This wild hog was photographed at the Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge in Oklahoma (March 2016). I bet the refuge manager is not happy to have wild hogs on this refuge. Just about everywhere I hiked on the refuge, I saw signs of hogs.
I decided, after seeing signs of hogs, that I would try to stalk up on one and get a photo. I rate wild hogs right up there with deer and coyotes when it comes to being wary.
I found an area that had some fresh signs, and I began my search. After about an hour, I heard a few, and I began my stalk. Most of the time, you will hear a group of hogs before you will see them. They squeal a lot at each other. As you can see in the above photos, I was successful.
This one hog kept looking at me while I was photographing it, but I don’t think it knew what I was, and it didn’t pay me much attention after checking me out. Wild hogs are extremely dangerous when injured or cornered.
I was hand-holding a Canon EOS 7D Mark II camera with an EF100-400 mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM lens attached.
Camera Settings
- AV Mode
- Aperture: f/5.6
- ISO: 800
- Shutter Speed: 1/2500 sec.
- Focal Length: 400 mm