John Tomeček
While many try to avoid conflict, John Tomeček, Ph.D., RWFM associate professor, has made it much of his life’s work.
“One of the reasons I work in this field is that I find wildlife damage and conflict to be one of the most needful areas in wildlife management,” Tomeček said. “In order to maintain society’s tolerance for wildlife, we have to work through conflicts when they arise."
These conflicts with species run the gamut from coyotes, alligators, birds eating farmed fish and beyond.
Tomeček’s contributions to feral hog management are a prominent feature of his career — so much so that he is referred to by some as the “Feral Hog Czar of Texas.”
Tomeček lead efforts to assess the successes of the USDA’s Feral Swine Eradication and Control Pilot Program both in Texas and nationwide. He was also called upon directly by the Texas Legislature to lead a two-year study assessing the effectiveness of a warfarin-based toxicant in controlling feral hogs in Texas.
“I began working with wild pigs because I like addressing wildlife conflict,” Tomeček said. The wildlife conflict world has turned much of its attention towards wild pigs — not because it’s what we all want to work on, but because it’s one of the most urgent issues we face.”
He added that feral hog proliferation is one of the great conservation issues of this generation, crosscutting nearly every ecosystem around the globe aside from Antarctica.
In addition to service as chair of the Texas Wild Pig Task Force, Tomeček was tapped to chair the National Wild Pig Task Force in 2022. Recently, he was contracted by the National Parks Service to help improve their system for managing wild pigs nationwide.
Beyond the biology of this species, Tomeček said he is increasingly interested in the administration and policy aspects of managing wild pigs.
While much of his research program today revolves around feral hogs, Tomeček said his passion in research is carnivores, from coyotes to alligators. As the leader of the Texas Carnivore Ecology Laboratory, he currently directs efforts to improve conservation of a host of carnivorous species. Current projects include understanding the nesting ecology of American alligators in Texas; exploring new methods of protecting swift foxes in the Texas Panhandle using livestock guardian dogs and seeking to improve the management of rabies in coyotes and foxes on the U.S.-Mexico border.
“John displays excellence in teaching while also managing an active research and extension program and providing wildlife expertise from local to national levels,” said Stephen Webb, Ph.D., research assistant professor with the Texas A&M Natural Resources Institute and RWFM.
“Solving real problems in conservation and mentoring students is my favorite part of my job,” Tomeček said. “Honestly, teaching and mentoring students is the best thing I will ever do — they will go on to make a real difference in the world, and they teach me as much as I teach them.”
Tomeček said his favorite animal is a gray fox, and he will spend hours “talking” to them when the opportunity presents itself.
