Blurring Boundaries: Feral Rewilding, Biosecurity and Contested Wild Boar Belonging in England

O’Mahony, Kieran

doi:10.4103/cs.cs_19_39

Cited by 15 publications

(10 citation statements)

References 43 publications

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“…The return of wild boar as a rural actor began toward the end of the 20th Century when changing agricultural economies and subsidies led to their (re)introduction as "exotic" livestock, predominantly in southern England (Wilson, 2013;O'Mahony, 2020). Though licenses were given to farms from the 1980s onwards on the condition their enclosures were secure, wild boar took advantage of lapses in surveillance and deliberate acts of sabotage to transgress farm borders.…”

Section: England: Coexistence As Absence-presencementioning

confidence: 99%

Wild Boar Events and the Veterinarization of Multispecies Coexistence

Brož

Arregui

O’Mahony

2021

Front. Conserv. Sci.

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By considering the emergence and threat of African Swine Fever (ASF) in Europe, this paper demonstrates the growing role of veterinary rationales in reframing contemporary human-wild boar coexistence. Through comparative ethnographies of human-wild boar relations in the Czech Republic, Spain and England, it shows that coexistence is not a predictable and steady process but is also demarked by points of radical change in form, course and atmosphere. Such moments, or wild boar events, can lead to the (re-)formation or magnified influence of certain discourses, practices and power relations in determining strategies of bio-governance. Specifically, this paper highlights how the spread of ASF in Europe has accelerated an already ongoing process of veterinarization, understood as the growing prominence of veterinary sciences in the mediation and reorganization of contemporary socioecologies. This example highlights how veterinary logics increasingly influence localized human-wildlife relations and, through analogous practices of biosecurity and control, also connect different places and geographic contexts.

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Section: England: Coexistence As Absence-presencementioning

confidence: 99%

Wild Boar Events and the Veterinarization of Multispecies Coexistence

Brož

Arregui

O’Mahony

2021

Front. Conserv. Sci.

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“…Recently, the discourse of control in conservation has converged with concepts of biosecurity. Terms such as 'feral' are used to describe 'unsanctioned life' (such as wild boar) that is challenging and shaping new ideas about human-nature relations, and the control relationship between them [26,27].…”

Section: The Significance Of 'Control' In Conservationmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Despite significant analysis of issues of power and control in conservation [26] it remains a difficult concept to pin down. While others have focused in particular on the political ecology and 'biopolitics' of power and control in conservation [14,26,27], this paper seeks to add to the understanding of rewilding's place in conservation by unpacking what 'control' can mean in different settings.…”

Section: Dimensions Of 'Control' In Conservationmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…This sort of control could also relate to the distribution of particular habitats and species through concepts and language like 'non-native', 'alien', 'invasive' and 'feral,' with the implication that organisms have places that they ought and ought not to be [6,48,49]. It is here that conservation and biosecurity potentially converge in the control of 'unsanctioned life' [27].…”

Section: Dimensions Of 'Control' In Conservationmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Everything under control? Comparing Knepp Estate rewilding project with ‘traditional’ nature conservation

Dempsey

2021

PLoS ONE

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‘Rewilding’ is an increasingly prominent concept in conservation, but one that has attracted controversy. Debate frequently focuses on human ‘control’ over nature. ‘Traditional’ conservation has been presented as involving ‘high control,’ and rewilding as ‘low control.’ Opposition to rewilding often stems from a perceived lack of control and associated perception of increased risk and uncertainty. This paper explores the concept of control in conservation. I identify multiple dimensions of control (‘stabilisation’, ‘location’, ‘prediction’ and ‘outputs’), illustrating that control is not a simple, linear concept. I compare two ethnographic case studies: the Sussex Wildlife Trust’s Old Lodge nature reserve; and Knepp Estate, one of the most influential rewilding projects in the UK. I use them to test assertions made about control in ‘traditional’ conservation and ‘rewilding’. I outline how Old Lodge does not exert precise control in all respects, but involves elements of uncertainty and negotiation. I describe how Knepp’s model of rewilding reduces control in some dimensions but potentially increases it in others. I conclude that, while Knepp’s rewilding does represent a significant conceptual departure from ‘traditional’ conservation, it should not be characterised as an approach that reduces control in a simplistic way. Based on this analysis, I argue that reduction of control does not necessarily underpin the concept of rewilding. Rather, there is interplay between different control dimensions that combine to form multiple ‘configurations of control.’ Using a framework of ‘configurations of control’, debate about the place of rewilding in conservation can become less polarised, and instead involve an active discussion of what configuration of control is desired. This analysis has the potential to increase understanding of rewilding projects as part of plural conservation strategies, in the UK and globally.

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“…2019). In England, the reintroduction of the wild Pig ( Sus scrofa ) to its native range where it has been absent since the 17 th century has created controversy between conservationists advocating for the rewilding initiative, and community groups who regard them as feral pests for digging up a cemetery among other ‘transgressions’ (O'Mahony 2020). In northern Australia, management of Buffalo ( Bubalus bubalis ), Donkey ( Equus asinus ), horses and pigs is made complex partly due to Indigenous cultural values of these species as totems, food and religious and historical artefacts (Robinson, et al .…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Lessons from old fenced plots: Eco‐cultural Impacts of feral ungulates and potential decline in sea‐level rise resilience of coastal floodplains in northern Australia

Sloane¹,

Ens²,

Wunungmurra³

et al. 2021

Eco Management Restoration

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Management of feral animals can be complicated by conflicting economic, social, cultural and political values of stakeholders. To visually demonstrate the ecological impacts of feral ungulates, natural resource managers often construct exclusion fences; however, lessons are not often widely shared in the scientific literature and Indigenous insights are rarely recorded. Here, we report on long-term (7-11 years) feral buffalo and pig exclusion fences that were constructed by the Yirralka Rangers in ephemeral coastal wetlands of the Laynhapuy Indigenous Protected Area, northern Australia. Elevation transects across fence boundaries suggested that feral ungulates may be eroding floodplains and therefore reducing elevation. Comparisons of intermittent photos and contemporary inside-outside fence floristic assessments suggested that feral ungulates have an obvious and significant effect on vegetation cover and composition which may also inhibit natural soil accretion. Interviews with senior Indigenous knowledge holders revealed that feral ungulate culling was broadly supported due to impacts on cultural and spiritual values. Synthesis of the results suggested that feral ungulates are having substantial impacts on the cultural use, flora and soil stabilisation of coastal wetlands. Further research on soil erosion and accretion in places with and without ungulates will elucidate the effects of ungulates on potential sea-level rise resilience of coastal wetlands. This paper highlights the benefits of cross-cultural and collaborative multi-disciplinary research such as producing holistic outcomes relevant to stakeholders that can inform management decisions.

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Blurring Boundaries: Feral Rewilding, Biosecurity and Contested Wild Boar Belonging in England

Cited by 15 publications

References 43 publications

Wild Boar Events and the Veterinarization of Multispecies Coexistence

Wild Boar Events and the Veterinarization of Multispecies Coexistence

Everything under control? Comparing Knepp Estate rewilding project with ‘traditional’ nature conservation

Lessons from old fenced plots: Eco‐cultural Impacts of feral ungulates and potential decline in sea‐level rise resilience of coastal floodplains in northern Australia

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