Wild Boars Now Common Sight in Rome Suburb

Sightings of wild boars trotting along the streets have become usual for northern Rome residents, but incursions of animals in front of buildings and schools are heating up a major debate ahead of mayoral elections scheduled for early October. Local administrations have failed to implement effective management plans for the boars who come to the city to get food from the large parks in the outskirts, amid complaints that they are rummaging through the bins and causing car accidents. Dogs barked as a mother and her piglets, snuffling loudly, rummaged through the streets on Thursday, September 23, walking in the road next to cars and avoiding vespas. Mayor Virginia Raggi, as she seeks re-election, is struggling to shift responsibility for the capital's most serious issues, including wild animals, poor maintenance of pavements and heaps of rubbish piling up everywhere in the city. (Reuters)