Adapting current protocols is necessary to eradicate the novel ASFV variant in the peri-urban wild boar population of Barcelona, Spain.

In November 2025, a new genotype II African swine fever virus (ASFV) variant emerged in wild boars (Sus scrofa) in Barcelona, Spain. The peri-urban setting favours a higher wild boar population density. Furthermore, the new variant seems associated to slower mortality, possibly resulting in longer-lasting transmission. Together, such particularities form a novel outbreak scenario that requires adapting the current ASF eradication strategies developed for highly pathogenic ASFV-strains in lower density wild boar populations. While the same main interventions (fencing; carcass search, removal and disposal; and wild boar depopulation) are to be applied, the intensity, relative importance, and spatiotemporal distribution of each intervention must be tailored. The main recommended adaption is increasing culling intensity to reach depopulation, compensating higher population density and slower disease-related mortality. This represents a challenging objective in the peri-urban MAB context and its multiple human, wildlife, and environment-related constraints.