Large-scale assessment of the impacts of invasive wild pigs on water quality in freshwater streams
Abstract Highly competent hosts of zoonotic diseases of economic and epidemiological importance, the highly invasive species, Sus scrofa, has been identified as sources of non-point pollution in North America through small-scale studies of their fecal contamination in surface waters. Their fecal con...
Saved in:
| Main Authors: | , , , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Nature Portfolio
2025-05-01
|
| Series: | Scientific Reports |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-03477-8 |
| Tags: |
Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
|
| _version_ | 1850231305974841344 |
|---|---|
| author | Elizabeth A. Bradley B. Graeme Lockaby Steven Madere Vienna Brown Todd Steury |
| author_facet | Elizabeth A. Bradley B. Graeme Lockaby Steven Madere Vienna Brown Todd Steury |
| author_sort | Elizabeth A. Bradley |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Highly competent hosts of zoonotic diseases of economic and epidemiological importance, the highly invasive species, Sus scrofa, has been identified as sources of non-point pollution in North America through small-scale studies of their fecal contamination in surface waters. Their fecal contamination alters natural physicochemical stream characteristics and increases concentrations of fecal bacteria. Providing one of the first-large scale assessments of their impacts, our study identified wild pigs as a source of non-point pollution on both a regional and multi-regional scale within our selected study state through microbial source tracking and traditional water quality assessment. At a multi-regional scale, we found greater median concentrations (mg/L) of nitrate (95.7%; p < 0.001), magnesium (83.3%; p < 0.001), and potassium (84.7%; p < 0.001) in samples from streams with fecal contamination by wild pigs (n = 111) than from streams without (n = 115). Like other non-point pollutants, the effects of wild pigs on water quality are scale-dependent and differ significantly across regions. Finally, at both a regional and multi-regional scale, our study found observably greater Escherichia coli and fecal coliform concentrations in streams with wild pigs, though statistical significance was lost at scale. Future research will be necessary to continue to evaluate the impacts of wild pigs on water quality, especially across different scales. Our findings support continued monitoring of impacts as the density and range of North American wild pig populations continue to increase. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-2e96e0f1312e44bc8e7919d933efedb6 |
| institution | OA Journals |
| issn | 2045-2322 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-05-01 |
| publisher | Nature Portfolio |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Scientific Reports |
| spelling | doaj-art-2e96e0f1312e44bc8e7919d933efedb62025-08-20T02:03:35ZengNature PortfolioScientific Reports2045-23222025-05-0115111010.1038/s41598-025-03477-8Large-scale assessment of the impacts of invasive wild pigs on water quality in freshwater streamsElizabeth A. Bradley0B. Graeme Lockaby1Steven Madere2Vienna Brown3Todd Steury4College of Agriculture, Forestry, and Life Sciences, Clemson UniversityCollege of Forestry, Wildlife, and Environment, Auburn UniversityAgricultural Center, Louisiana State UniversityUnited States Department of Agriculture, Animal & Plant Health Inspection ServiceCollege of Forestry, Wildlife, and Environment, Auburn UniversityAbstract Highly competent hosts of zoonotic diseases of economic and epidemiological importance, the highly invasive species, Sus scrofa, has been identified as sources of non-point pollution in North America through small-scale studies of their fecal contamination in surface waters. Their fecal contamination alters natural physicochemical stream characteristics and increases concentrations of fecal bacteria. Providing one of the first-large scale assessments of their impacts, our study identified wild pigs as a source of non-point pollution on both a regional and multi-regional scale within our selected study state through microbial source tracking and traditional water quality assessment. At a multi-regional scale, we found greater median concentrations (mg/L) of nitrate (95.7%; p < 0.001), magnesium (83.3%; p < 0.001), and potassium (84.7%; p < 0.001) in samples from streams with fecal contamination by wild pigs (n = 111) than from streams without (n = 115). Like other non-point pollutants, the effects of wild pigs on water quality are scale-dependent and differ significantly across regions. Finally, at both a regional and multi-regional scale, our study found observably greater Escherichia coli and fecal coliform concentrations in streams with wild pigs, though statistical significance was lost at scale. Future research will be necessary to continue to evaluate the impacts of wild pigs on water quality, especially across different scales. Our findings support continued monitoring of impacts as the density and range of North American wild pig populations continue to increase.https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-03477-8 |
| spellingShingle | Elizabeth A. Bradley B. Graeme Lockaby Steven Madere Vienna Brown Todd Steury Large-scale assessment of the impacts of invasive wild pigs on water quality in freshwater streams Scientific Reports |
| title | Large-scale assessment of the impacts of invasive wild pigs on water quality in freshwater streams |
| title_full | Large-scale assessment of the impacts of invasive wild pigs on water quality in freshwater streams |
| title_fullStr | Large-scale assessment of the impacts of invasive wild pigs on water quality in freshwater streams |
| title_full_unstemmed | Large-scale assessment of the impacts of invasive wild pigs on water quality in freshwater streams |
| title_short | Large-scale assessment of the impacts of invasive wild pigs on water quality in freshwater streams |
| title_sort | large scale assessment of the impacts of invasive wild pigs on water quality in freshwater streams |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-03477-8 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT elizabethabradley largescaleassessmentoftheimpactsofinvasivewildpigsonwaterqualityinfreshwaterstreams AT bgraemelockaby largescaleassessmentoftheimpactsofinvasivewildpigsonwaterqualityinfreshwaterstreams AT stevenmadere largescaleassessmentoftheimpactsofinvasivewildpigsonwaterqualityinfreshwaterstreams AT viennabrown largescaleassessmentoftheimpactsofinvasivewildpigsonwaterqualityinfreshwaterstreams AT toddsteury largescaleassessmentoftheimpactsofinvasivewildpigsonwaterqualityinfreshwaterstreams |