“Above is heaven, below is Hangzhou", as the Chinese saying goes (上有天堂，下有苏杭), but if you're unfortunate enough to be a wild boar in the lake-endowed city, you may find yourself snuffling up to the big trough in the sky sooner than you hoped. Yes, after indiscriminate killing so effectively solved the feral dog and water logged rat infestations China has suffered of late, open season has been declared on Hangzhou's tuskiest residents.

Apparently, the not-so-wee (we're talking 200 kilo) porkers have been ransacking homes and bothering damsels in their boudoirs before - and this somehow evokes romantic notions of the pigs as some kind of hammy band of freedom fighters - "escaping to a mountainous area", according to a Shanghai Daily report. For their efforts, the boars have earned a suspension of their status as a protected animal, with hunters authorized to choose between encouraging the pigs to leave peacefully, or blowing their brains out. Apparently, seven have been nailed already.

If you manage to bag and tag one yourself, then you could visit the slightly-too-enthusiastic iheartbacon.com for detailed tips on how to rustle up a mean dongpo rou.