A campaign for the return of the sport of boar hunting has been given a boost after a Government consultation revealed there was overwhelming public support.

About 80 per cent of people have said they are in favour of wild boar being killed to protect human safety and prevent damage to native plants such as bluebells that thrive in woodland areas inhabited by the animals in Sussex.

Up to 1,000 wild boar and feral pigs are thought to be living in the county, particularly around the Sussex Weald.

Without action, ministers at the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) have been told their number could easily reach 10,000 within 20 years.

Farmers are anxious for action against boar to protect crops and livestock and to prevent the spread of swine fever and foot-and-mouth disease.

Boar are prized as a formidable quarry and if the Government gives the go-ahead for increased hunting in areas where they are deemed a pest, it could attract game hunters from across the Continental Europe where boar meat is still regularly eaten.

A spokesman for Defra said: "It is likely that a range of measures would be employed including trapping and shooting at bait stations.

"Other techniques which are in development may also be used to limit population growth and reduce the number of animals that need to be culled."

Defra believes boar are responsible for a number of road crashes every year and even direct attacks on people. A consultation by the Government to find the best way of managing numbers found about 80 per cent of those responding in favour of some kind of "active management".

Just over 40 per cent favoured complete eradication and 30 per cent were in support of measures to control the boar population.

The Defra spokesman said: "One of the favoured options is regional management which could involve hunting boar for sport. This is particularly the case in Sussex which has one of the largest concentrations.

"As a large and formidable quarry species, boar are an important source of sport shooting in much of Europe.

"This is also occurring in the fledgling English populations and is likely to increase if the boar population rises.

"Boar are an important source of game meat in continental Europe and there is also a flourishing business in the supply of boar meat from the feral English populations."

Wild boar became extinct in Britain around the end of the 13th Century but made a comeback mainly because of escapes from farms and abattoirs.

The League Against Cruel Sports, the Born Free Foundation and The People's Trust for Endangered Species oppose the re-introduction of hunting.

Locations of the most recent sightings of wild boar reported on the British Wild Boar website include at Peasmarsh, Piltdown and Broadoak.