Collserola Park will be completely closed to the public until the more than 500 wild boars living there are killed. This is the objective set by the Department of Agriculture, which has already entrusted the Rural Agents Corps with the task of controlling and capturing the animals. The department, headed by Òscar Ordeig, has confirmed that the official resolution will be published this afternoon, but the Catalan government has already begun implementing the "immediate" and "total" closure of the park. Access to the Collserola mountain range was already restricted in many areas, and now the fences and controls will also be extended to the entrances from Barcelona. This comes after the minister himself admitted yesterday that a new case of African swine fever (ASF) had been detected in a wild boar in this area, within the city limits of Barcelona.

African swine fever (ASF) has reached Barcelona. A new positive case of a wild boar infected with the virus has been detected within the Barcelona municipality, as reported this afternoon by the Catalan Minister of Agriculture, Òscar Ordeig, who indicated that this new case will appear in tomorrow's official count by the Ministry of Agriculture. This latest positive result has prompted heightened precautions in the Collserola mountain range, where the closure of the natural park has been reinforced, as reported earlier today by the online newspaper. NationOrdeig explained that a resolution will be issued tomorrow to extend access restrictions to the natural environment, specifically expanding them to the entire Collserola Natural Park. "We are continuing with the containment strategy for the epicenter and the entire Collserola area; as you know, closing the entire natural park is impossible," the minister admitted, "but we are implementing a containment strategy and also reinforcing our resources with captures," he continued. The minister detailed that they met this morning with the municipalities affected by the natural park's entry into the highest-risk zone, as well as with the park's consortium, and that the resolution will be made public tomorrow, Thursday. The Minister of Agriculture again asked for patience and insisted that "the solution will not be short-term under any circumstances." Ordeig explained that containing the virus in this area is easier because it borders the Mediterranean Sea on one side, but, conversely, "there is a difficulty" because it is all happening in a densely populated urban area full of businesses, making perimeter closures difficult.

The Catalan Minister of Agriculture, Òscar Ordeig, has announced that 21 new cases of African swine fever have been detected in wild boar. One of these cases was located in Sant Just Desvern, outside the initial area of ​​Cerdanyola del Vallès. This has led to the inclusion of this municipality and Esplugues de Llobregat in the high-risk zone, which now has an expanded perimeter, as confirmed by sources from the Department of Agriculture. With these new cases, the total number of infections has risen to 216. The Department also explained that another 1,708 wild boars tested negative. At an event in Seròs, in the Segrià region, Minister Ordeig emphasized that personnel and resources continue to be deployed as part of the eradication plan in the affected area and urged "great caution." "We are continuing with the strategy of perimeter closures and increasing captures using all necessary means, including drones, snipers, traps, and so on," Ordeig pointed out, adding that some areas have been reinforced. The regional minister expressed "concern" about the impact of the disease on the sector, but also "determination and responsibility," he said, to "act quickly and decisively." He explained that all available personnel from all agencies in Catalonia have been mobilized. "I would ask, please, to let the technicians and professionals do their work," he concluded. Ordeig also called for "a united front and unity of action" among the stakeholders involved in managing the plague, such as the livestock sector, scientists, and government agencies. "We have to do it right and we have to do it quickly, but that takes time," he acknowledged, and also recalled that, of the 25 European countries that registered cases of African swine fever, the fastest to eradicate the disease was Belgium, which took "just over a year to find the last positive case."

"The available data indicate that the outbreak began between September and October, not later." This is one of the first conclusions drawn by IRTA-CReSA—the leading animal health institution in Catalonia—regarding the origin of the African swine fever (ASF) outbreak in Catalonia. IRTA, which is also one of Europe's most established research centers on ASF, raises the possibility that the ASF outbreak began one or two months before the first case of African swine fever was detected in Bellaterra at the end of November. IRTA-CReSA explains this in a statement, asserting that the center "is pleased that it has been confirmed that it is not the origin of the African swine fever outbreak." "Scientific evidence confirms this," they emphasize in the document, where they recall that the initial state report, made public last week, shows how "the genetic sequencing of the pathogen that infected the animals found dead in the wild has been compared with the DNA of the strains used in the IRTA biosafety facilities." Furthermore, IRTA announces that "in the coming weeks" it will launch a study on the degree of virulence, behavior, and transmissibility of the virus causing the outbreak. In this regard, they detail that up to this week, more than a thousand samples have been analyzed, of which 155 have tested positive for African swine fever (ASF), and eighteen tons of meat related to the outbreak have been incinerated—the same amount that is usually incinerated in nine months. Moreover, the researchers are also working on the analysis and processing of the data, which is shared daily with the Department of Agriculture. It is in this part of the investigation where they have They found that "the available data" indicate that the outbreak began between September and October 2025. Regarding its origin, IRTA insists that "everything points to the investigations having to refocus on the introduction of contaminated food into the country." In other words, the famous sandwich theory.

With great foresight, and in the face of the emergency, the Catalan Government "establishes the Wild Boar Roundtable to reduce conflicts arising from the overabundance of the species in Catalonia." The verb "establish" is the Government's own, and I find it very appropriate, because "enough," for example, or "builds" would be too literal and lead to misunderstandings. It's not as if our politicians have suddenly become carpenters. Now, a Wild Boar Roundtable can be many things. Who sits at a Wild Boar Roundtable? Wild boars? And what is served at this Roundtable? Civet?

"I'm from a farming family, the smell of pigs has never bothered me," says 20-year-old Ariadna Rovira. She grew up on a farm in Sagàs, but lives in Solsona, where she first became interested in hunting. Today she's part of the Berga hunting group and criticizes people who think that killing animals makes them murderers.

The wild boar population in Catalonia numbered over 200,000 before the arrival of African swine fever (ASF), and over 2.4 million across Spain as a whole. These figures were revealed by the first European wild boar density map, produced by the Health and Biotechnology Research Group of the Institute for Game and Wildlife Research (IREC) and the European consortium ENETWILD.

Initial reports from the audit at the IRTA-CReSA Animal Health Research Center, aimed at determining whether African swine fever (ASF) originated in one of its laboratories, indicate that the facilities and protocols "are in good order" and that everything functioned as it should. This was explained on Friday by the Minister of Agriculture, Òscar Ordeig, following Thursday's findings. A joint operation by the Mossos d'Esquadra and the Guardia Civil will search these laboratories within the framework of the investigation to determine the origin of the infections. "Pending some additional documentation that we still need, everything indicates that the facilities are fine, the protocols are correct, and everything has been done properly, according to the experts' audit," the regional minister assured.

The Central Veterinary Laboratory in Algete (Madrid) has confirmed that 10 more wild boars have tested positive for African swine fever (ASF). All of them were found in the vicinity of Collserola Park, within the municipality of Cerdanyola del Vallès, as were all the other specimens in which the presence of the pathogen has been confirmed. Including these 10 confirmed cases from Tuesday, the total number of wild boars that have died from ASF in the highest-risk area is now 26. The other 208 carcasses analyzed tested negative for ASF, according to a statement from the Ministry of Agriculture. The Catalan Minister of Agriculture, Òscar Ordeig, stated that the detection of these 10 new positive cases "is within the realm of normality," given that the search for wild boars in the virus-affected area has been intensified in recent days. "It's normal for them to keep appearing; ideally, they should be contained," he said after explaining that all the cases were found within the same 6-kilometer radius. "This was already expected. In fact, the real news would be if no more cases appeared," Ordeig said at a press conference from the Palau de la Generalitat, where he ruled out increasing restrictions on access to the natural environment as a result of these new cases.

It's not even eight in the morning and everyone's already there. They've had breakfast, but they're making coffee to warm up and finish getting organized. The younger ones are with the dog handlers, devising the strategy for the hunt. Inside their headquarters, a small space with walls covered in the heads of wild boar and roe deer, the older members are gathered in front of the fireplace. They also participate in the hunt organized by the El Pi de Berga Wild Boar Association, but they're veterans and observe it with a certain detachment.

The Catalan government is finalizing the perimeter closure this Thursday, using "fences and other physical barriers," of a 6-kilometer radius in the Collserola area where African swine fever (ASF) was detected. This measure aims to intensify the capture and culling of wild boar, as explained by the Minister of Agriculture, Livestock, Fisheries and Aquaculture. The Minister indicated that the actions will be carried out within a radius of 4 to 6 kilometers to "create a safety zone free of animals that could spread the virus to either side." This area, now closed off with physical barriers, is the closest to the origin of the ASF outbreak, which is where the first two dead wild boars infected with the virus were found. Following European, national, and Catalan health regulations regarding outbreaks of African swine fever, the Catalan government has declared two different zones affected by the epidemic: the first encompasses municipalities within a 6-kilometer radius of the initial outbreak, considered a "high-risk zone"—where physical barriers will now be erected—and the second, a "low-risk zone" extending 20 kilometers from the outbreak's origin. Currently, movement restrictions not only affect the main outbreak area within the 6-kilometer radius but also extend to a total of 91 towns in the Barcelona metropolitan area within a 20-kilometer radius of the initial outbreak, as well as nearby natural parks. The Department of Agriculture has restricted access to natural areas until December 14, but depending on how the epidemic evolves, this period could be extended starting next Monday.

The Animal Health Research Center (IRTA-CReSA) denies that the construction work being carried out at its facilities could have affected the biosafety of its laboratories. This is the first statement issued by IRTA, which ARA has been able to access, since the Ministry of Agriculture announced on Friday that is investigating whether the African swine fever (ASF) outbreak originated in a laboratory

The Catalan Minister of Agriculture, Livestock, Fisheries, and Food, Òscar Ordeig, stated this Wednesday that the Catalan government intends to halve the wild boar population in Catalonia. To this end, Ordeig announced the creation of the Catalan Wild Boar Roundtable, an organization that will bring together public administrations, hunting associations, and scientists specializing in game wildlife with the aim of more closely monitoring the number of these mammals and their distribution across the region. The overpopulation of wild boar in Catalonia has returned to the public debate following the discovery of 15 dead specimens infected with the African swine fever (ASF) virus. Despite the cases of infected wild boar, Ordeig reiterated that, for the moment, no positive cases have been detected in domestic pigs on the 55 livestock farms located in the 91 municipalities within the area considered affected by ASF. "For the moment, the virus has not entered any farms or any commercial circuit," he declared. "What is our objective? To reduce the wild boar population in Catalonia by 50% in the coming years," Ordeig explained before appearing before the Parliament's Agriculture Committee, where he outlined the Catalan government's actions to curb the outbreak of African swine fever to the parliamentary groups. The minister estimated the number of wild boar in Catalonia at 125,000 "in winter"—that is, before the breeding season—which could reach around 180,000 at peak population. To achieve this objective, Ordeig announced the creation of the Catalan Wild Boar Roundtable, a "governance body" that will include representatives from various public administrations, game scientists, the primary sector, and hunting associations, among others. This committee will be responsible for controlling the wild boar population throughout Catalonia.

In the rural area where I live, near the Montserrat Natural Park, the wild boar and roe deer populations have long been out of control. Not long ago, wild boars killed the dog of a neighboring farmhouse—farmhouses, with their land, had never been fenced in—which confronted them. As I have repeatedly stated, hunters have been demonized by a population even more destructive than the wild boars: tourists. President Isla asks "Increase the capture of wild boar and reduce its negative impact," and Councilor Ordeig explained it this way: "You can say it in one language or another, in Girona, in Lleida, or in the Pyrenees: there are too many wild boar." We've had to put up with those who trample crops because they're taking wedding photos or Instagram videos, and they think hunters are just awful. It can happen that several of these hooligans, all of them caravanners, throw a party with high-proof alcohol, like vodka, in a vineyard. Which they ruin. And they're the ones who lecture us about whether humans are worse than wild boar, and so on and so forth.

In the early 2000s, the wild boar population density in Catalonia was around three and a half animals per square kilometer. This meant that approximately 106,000 wild boars roamed the Catalan fields and forests. Today, 25 years later, the number of wild boars in Catalonia has risen to around 200,000. In fact, according to the latest data from Wild boar population monitoring program in Catalonia According to the Department of Agriculture, Livestock, Fisheries and Food, in the 24-25 season the density of wild boars per km² in Catalonia reached 6.4 km², almost double that at the beginning of the millennium.

To make a good squirrel rice dish, the squirrel is caught and skinned, taking care to remove any hair embedded in the meat by the shotgun pellets. The tail can be used up to the second or third knot. The head, once skinned and cut into pieces, is added with the other pieces, and the liver is reserved to cushion the bite. Once skinned, the squirrel is opened along the belly, slid open, and washed under running water. It is then quartered and browned with the wood pigeon and the rib of the guinea fowl.

It is estimated that there are around 200,000 wild boars in Catalonia, distributed unevenly across the territory. A monitoring program has been in place for two decades, documenting the differences in population density: there are more than fifteen animals per square kilometer in Alt Empordà and Les Gavarres, fewer than three in Els Ports de Tortosa-Beseit, and between three and six along the coast. Collserola ParkThe area is where the outbreak of African swine fever, which has raised all the alarms, is concentrated. Generous rainfall, an abundance of holm oaks, oaks, and beech forests, along with extensive irrigated crops, favor the proliferation of these animals, which generally follow an upward demographic trend. In fact, the Catalan government's program indicates that "wild boar populations do not appear to be close to reaching their peak and have the potential to continue growing."

People are photographing and recording the scene. In the courtyard of a convent in the upper part of Barcelona, ​​a large wild boar is running up and down. The witness who describes it says it's as big "as a cow." The building is closed, and the animal is exploring its gardens. Behind it, four police officers are trying to guide it toward a net they had set up, but it has escaped. The boar has run toward the mountain, back toward Collserola. This scene is not new in the Barcelona neighborhoods bordering Tibidabo—it's more frequent—but the outbreak of African swine fever detected not far from there means that the presence of wild boars is being noticed more than ever by the public.

Wild boar will be captured this Sunday in Collserola Park, after four new suspected cases of African swine fever were reported on Saturday. Farmers, hunters, and representatives from the department met to finalize the details of the operation, while the Department of Agriculture is asking citizens to respect the restrictions and not enter the park or the rural areas of the affected municipalities. The wild boar will be captured using cages, traps, and repellents to keep them contained within a perimeter and prevent them from escaping. Additionally, three of the natural parks surrounding Barcelona, ​​managed by the Barcelona Provincial Council, have suspended several activities scheduled for this Sunday due to the swine fever outbreak. These include the guided tour of the Mura cave in Sant Llorenç Park; the mushroom walk in Marina Park; and the visit to Sant Miquel del Fai.

Accidents involving collisions with wild animals have not decreased in Catalonia for more than ten years, according to a Study by the opinion research center Ponle Freno and the Axa FoundationCatalonia ranks third in Spain in terms of accidents caused by collisions with wild animals. Regarding the severity of these accidents, the mortality rate in Lleida stands out, with a high incidence, ranking second in the region with the highest number of fatal accidents caused by collisions with wild animals.