Poaching in Sonian Forest: ‘Poachers are difficult to catch in Brussels’

The discovery of wild boar remains in the Sonian Forest and Elisabeth Park is not in itself a signal that there are more wild boars in Brussels, but forest rangers have recently regularly found traces of the animals in the Sonian Forest.

“We are only aware of one wild boar that regularly appeared in the Brussels part of the Sonian Forest,” says ranger Willy Van De Velde. That boar, which was given the typical Brussels name ‘Suske’, was first spotted in 2006, says Van De Velde. “But it is not certain that he is still around here. But nearby, in the arboretum of Tervuren, there is a whole group. We recently received a photo of fifteen wild boars. They are rooting around in the ground in broad daylight.”

There are many more in the Meerdaalwoud, on the border of Flemish and Walloon Brabant. “For wild boars, that distance is not that great. They can handle long treks. It would be nice to have wild boars in Brussels again, as proof that the quality of our nature is improving. On the other hand, wild boars can cause damage to nature and can be a problem for agriculture.” Wild boars even dare to enter gardens. For example, last summer a woman from Tervuren was visited by the animals that had dug up her garden during the night.

“The problem is that a wild boar population does not regulate itself naturally,” Van De Velde adds. “If the population becomes too large, humans have to intervene, as is happening today in the Meerdaal Forest. If that is necessary in the long term, we will also have to hunt here in Brussels.”