Police evacuate children and teenagers from Costa del Sol park due to presence of wild boar

Chus Heredia

Malaga

Monday, 10 February 2025, 16:42 | Updated 17:32h.

Sightings of wild boar taking over some of Malaga province's urban areas are being reported more frequently nowadays and last week was no exception. Teenagers and parents with little children were caught off-guard in the afternoon on Friday 7 February, when a herd of wild boar approached the Baden-Powell park in the Limonar neighbourhood of Malaga city, popular among local residents for its slides, skate park and sports courts. At around 7pm, about half an hour after the arrival of the herd, the police cleared the area.

A woman that lives near the park contacted SUR to raise awareness of the issue. "My 14-year-old son [his photo is at the top of this article] was with eight or nine friends playing basketball. At first, they were curious to see the wild boar appear. It probably started at around 6.20pm but at around 7pm, the police cleared the park," she said.

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The park area's terrain, dense vegetation and possible food remains attract the animals that have gradually lost their sense of fear of humans. Not far from the playgrounds, the grass around the Fuente de Berrocal has been uprooted, leaving the area looking a complete mess.

The concerned mother, a lawyer by profession, hopes that making this information public will alert authorities to take action. "My son told me that one of the wild boar was very big. There could be an accident one day," she said.

"If, for example, a wild boar defecates in a children's playground and then a child plays with the soil, this could spread an infection," said Juan Antonio De Luque, president of the Malaga veterinary association. He warned that people should not get used to these animals becoming urban fauna or a normal background in spaces shared by people. A few days ago, there was a similar incident in La Virreina; a fortnight ago - in Las Flores.

Complaints from local residents around the streets of La Era, Sierra de Grazalema, Sierra del Co and even Mayorazgo, as well as the area around the health centre, are frequent, almost daily. The hybrid animals, cross between a wild boar and domestic pig, use the numerous streams in the area as access and bedding. They have lost their fear of humans and find easy food and drink. They have even started to steal food and drink from the cat colonies.

Police sources have said that operations related to the capturing of wild boars are becoming more and more frequent. Sometimes, officers will try to drive the animals up the mountain. Other times, they call professionals from the city police force's Gruprona) nature protection group to invoke the protocol for dealing with them.

Wild boar 'invasions' are coming closer and closer to urban areas. They have already been spotted inside the Colegio El Monte, on Calle Francisco Miranda (Cristo de la Epidemia area) or in the Baños del Carmen. Recently, a large male animal generated a great commotion in broad daylight in the middle of the Guadalmedina area. Images are sent from Fuengirola and Mijas, where wild boar have already been spotted walking inside shopping centres and walking along the promenade or the beach.

The risk of accidents, possible attacks, economic damage and even zoonosis is great. At the moment, neither the local councils nor the Junta have come up with a method to stop what is scientifically considered a plague of an exotic species. Malaga city council has started to use anaesthetic darts and euthanasia. However, such procedures are only carried out in the riverbeds, for safety reasons. In addition to a series of other complementary measures, the council is also using capture sites.

It is estimated that there are 22,000 specimens of wild boar throughout Malaga province.