:''"Bush pig" may also refer to the
red river hog
The red river hog (''Potamochoerus porcus'') or bushpig (a named also used for the '' Potamochoerus larvatus''), is a wild member of the pig family living in Africa, with most of its distribution in the Guinean and Congolian forests. It is rarel ...
.
The bushpig (''Potamochoerus larvatus'') is a member of the
pig family
Suidae is a family of artiodactyl mammals which are commonly called pigs, hogs or swine. In addition to numerous fossil species, 18 extant species are currently recognized (or 19 counting domestic pigs and wild boars separately), classified into ...
that inhabits forests, woodland, riverine vegetation and cultivated areas in
East and
Southern Africa
Southern Africa is the southernmost subregion of the African continent, south of the Congo and Tanzania. The physical location is the large part of Africa to the south of the extensive Congo River basin. Southern Africa is home to a number of ...
. Probably
introduced populations are also present in
Madagascar
Madagascar (; mg, Madagasikara, ), officially the Republic of Madagascar ( mg, Repoblikan'i Madagasikara, links=no, ; french: République de Madagascar), is an island country in the Indian Ocean, approximately off the coast of East Africa ...
. There have also been unverified reports of their presence on the
Comoro island of
Mayotte
Mayotte (; french: Mayotte, ; Shimaore: ''Maore'', ; Kibushi: ''Maori'', ), officially the Department of Mayotte (french: Département de Mayotte), is an overseas department and region and single territorial collectivity of France. It is loc ...
. Bushpigs are mainly
nocturnal
Nocturnality is an animal behavior characterized by being active during the night and sleeping during the day. The common adjective is "nocturnal", versus diurnal meaning the opposite.
Nocturnal creatures generally have highly developed sens ...
. There are several
subspecies
In biological classification, subspecies is a rank below species, used for populations that live in different areas and vary in size, shape, or other physical characteristics (morphology), but that can successfully interbreed. Not all species ...
.
The
vernacular name 'bushpig' may be used for either ''
Potamochoerus
''Potamochoerus'' (meaning "river pig") is a genus in the pig family (Suidae). The two species are restricted to sub-Saharan Africa, although the bushpig, possibly due to introduction by humans, also occurs in Madagascar and nearby islands. Earl ...
'' species.
Description
Adult bushpigs stand from at the shoulder,
[Kingdon, J. (1997). ''The Kingdon Guide to African Mammals.'' Academic Press Limited, London. ] and mature boars can reach a weight of , although is more common.
Sows are .[ They resemble the domestic pig, and can be identified by their pointed, tufted ears and face mask.
Bushpigs vary in hair colour and skin colour over their range, southern ''koiropotamus'' and ''nyasae'' populations are dark reddish, sometimes almost black. The coat colour darkens with age. Their heads have a 'face mask' with a contrasting pattern of blackish to dark brown and white to dark grey markings, or may sometimes be completely whitish. The ears have tassels of long hairs. Their very sharp tusks are fairly short and inconspicuous. Unlike ]warthog
''Phacochoerus'' is a genus in the family Suidae, commonly known as warthogs (pronounced ''wart-hog''). They are pigs who live in open and semi-open habitats, even in quite arid regions, in sub-Saharan Africa. The two species were formerly cons ...
s, bushpigs run with their long and thin tails down.
Males are normally larger than females. Old males develop two warts on their snout. Piglets are born with pale yellowish longitudinal stripes on a dark brown background, these soon disappear and the coat becomes reddish brown, with a black and white dorsal crest in both sexes.[ This mane bristles when the animal becomes agitated.
]
Distribution
Distributed over a wide range, the bushpig occurs from Ethiopia
Ethiopia, , om, Itiyoophiyaa, so, Itoobiya, ti, ኢትዮጵያ, Ítiyop'iya, aa, Itiyoppiya officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country in the Horn of Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the ...
and Somalia
Somalia, , Osmanya script: 𐒈𐒝𐒑𐒛𐒐𐒘𐒕𐒖; ar, الصومال, aṣ-Ṣūmāl officially the Federal Republic of SomaliaThe ''Federal Republic of Somalia'' is the country's name per Article 1 of thProvisional Constituti ...
to eastern and southern DR Congo
The Democratic Republic of the Congo (french: République démocratique du Congo (RDC), colloquially "La RDC" ), informally Congo-Kinshasa, DR Congo, the DRC, the DROC, or the Congo, and formerly and also colloquially Zaire, is a country in ...
and southwards to Cape and KwaZulu-Natal Province
KwaZulu-Natal (, also referred to as KZN and known as "the garden province") is a province of South Africa that was created in 1994 when the Zulu bantustan of KwaZulu ("Place of the Zulu" in Zulu) and Natal Province were merged. It is locat ...
in South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...
.[ It also occurs on ]Madagascar
Madagascar (; mg, Madagasikara, ), officially the Republic of Madagascar ( mg, Repoblikan'i Madagasikara, links=no, ; french: République de Madagascar), is an island country in the Indian Ocean, approximately off the coast of East Africa ...
and possibly the Comoros
The Comoros,, ' officially the Union of the Comoros,; ar, الاتحاد القمري ' is an independent country made up of three islands in southeastern Africa, located at the northern end of the Mozambique Channel in the Indian Ocean. It ...
archipelago. It is not known how it reached these islands, but it was probably taken there by humans, possibly after a period of domestication.[ Numerous hybrids with normal pigs have also been reported.]
The bushpig appears to have increased their range in Botswana
Botswana (, ), officially the Republic of Botswana ( tn, Lefatshe la Botswana, label=Setswana, ), is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. Botswana is topographically flat, with approximately 70 percent of its territory being the Kalahar ...
during the late 1970s or early 1980s. In 1993 it was stated that it might be possible that the northern range of the swine had contracted due to sahelisation. It is very uncommon in Burundi
Burundi (, ), officially the Republic of Burundi ( rn, Repuburika y’Uburundi ; Swahili language, Swahili: ''Jamuhuri ya Burundi''; French language, French: ''République du Burundi'' ), is a landlocked country in the Great Rift Valley at the ...
.[
]
Taxonomy
For most of 20th century bushpigs were seen as a single species, ''Potamochoerus porcus'', by almost all authors. In 1993 Peter Grubb, writing for the IUCN
The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN; officially International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources) is an international organization working in the field of nature conservation and sustainable use of natu ...
, split both the bushpig and the warthog into different species, and recognised numerous subspecies of all African hogs. The bushpig subspecies
In biological classification, subspecies is a rank below species, used for populations that live in different areas and vary in size, shape, or other physical characteristics (morphology), but that can successfully interbreed. Not all species ...
from West Africa (''porcus''), with more reddish hair, was seen as an independent species by him. Other authors have since continued to follow his interpretation of the bushpig. Because bushpigs had first been described from West Africa, this western taxon
In biology, a taxon (back-formation from ''taxonomy''; plural taxa) is a group of one or more populations of an organism or organisms seen by taxonomists to form a unit. Although neither is required, a taxon is usually known by a particular nam ...
retained the name ''P. porcus'', whereas all the other bushpig subspecies needed a new name. Bushpigs from the island of Madagascar
Madagascar (; mg, Madagasikara, ), officially the Republic of Madagascar ( mg, Repoblikan'i Madagasikara, links=no, ; french: République de Madagascar), is an island country in the Indian Ocean, approximately off the coast of East Africa ...
had been described as a new species in 1822 by Frédéric Cuvier, ''P. larvatus'', but were reduced to a subspecies of the bushpig when it realised they were the same as those of mainland Africa. As Cuvier's publication had the oldest available name for the animals, this became the new Latin name for the other bushpig subspecies.[
''P. larvatus'' is very closely related to ''P. porcus'', the bushpig from West Africa also known as 'red river hog', with which it can interbreed,] although others dispute this.[ It is distinguished from the western pig by having a less reddish hair colour and the hair being coarser, longer and less dense.][ Some pig populations in ]Uganda
}), is a landlocked country in East Africa
East Africa, Eastern Africa, or East of Africa, is the eastern subregion of the African continent. In the United Nations Statistics Division scheme of geographic regions, 10-11-(16*) territor ...
display physical characteristics intermediate between the two species.[ ''P. porcus'' may sometimes aggregate in larger sounders than ''P. larvatus''.][
In the zone between the western forms and the other bushpigs, i.e. in DR Congo and ]South Sudan
South Sudan (; din, Paguot Thudän), officially the Republic of South Sudan ( din, Paankɔc Cuëny Thudän), is a landlocked country in East Africa. It is bordered by Ethiopia, Sudan, Central African Republic, Democratic Republic of the C ...
, it remained unclear which populations belonged to which species in 1993,[ although the IUCN now assigns them to this species.][
Subspecies recognised in 1970 were:][
* ''P. porcus koiropotamus'' - South Africa
* ''P. porcus nyasae'' - southeast Africa
* ''P. porcus larvatus'' - Madagascar
Grubb recognised four subspecies in 1993:][
* ''P. larvatus larvatus'' - Comoros, western Madagascar
* ''P. larvatus hassama'' - ]Eritrea
Eritrea ( ; ti, ኤርትራ, Ertra, ; ar, إرتريا, ʾIritriyā), officially the State of Eritrea, is a country in the Horn of Africa region of Eastern Africa, with its capital and largest city at Asmara. It is bordered by Ethiopia ...
, Ethiopia
Ethiopia, , om, Itiyoophiyaa, so, Itoobiya, ti, ኢትዮጵያ, Ítiyop'iya, aa, Itiyoppiya officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country in the Horn of Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the ...
, Sudan
Sudan ( or ; ar, السودان, as-Sūdān, officially the Republic of the Sudan ( ar, جمهورية السودان, link=no, Jumhūriyyat as-Sūdān), is a country in Northeast Africa. It shares borders with the Central African Republic t ...
* ''P. larvatus hova'' - eastern Madagascar, a small ''koiropotamus''
* ''P. larvatus koiropotamus'' - Angola
, national_anthem = " Angola Avante"()
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, capital = Luanda
, religion =
, religion_year = 2020
, religion_ref =
, coordina ...
, South Africa, southeast Africa to southern Tanzania
Tanzania (; ), officially the United Republic of Tanzania ( sw, Jamhuri ya Muungano wa Tanzania), is a country in East Africa within the African Great Lakes region. It borders Uganda to the north; Kenya to the northeast; Comoro Islands and ...
, Somalia?
If the Madagascar form is a feral introduction from East Africa, the East African subspecies needs to be renamed to ''larvatus''. Nothing was known about the Somalian populations in 1993, which was why it was not recognised.[
Subspecies recognised in 2005 were:][
* ''P. larvatus larvatus'' - Comoros, western Madagascar
* ''P. larvatus edwardsi'' - eastern Madagascar, syn. ''hova''
* ''P. larvatus hassama'' - Eritrea, Ethiopia, Sudan, South Sudan?
* ''P. larvatus koiropotamus'' - Cape Region
* ''P. larvatus nyasae'' - Angola, DRC, eastern South Africa, southeast Africa to southern Tanzania
* ''P. larvatus somaliensis'' - Somalia
]
Ecology
The main habitat requirement is dense cover, bushpigs avoid open forests or savannas.[ Bushpigs can be found in forests with high trees, ]montane forest
Montane ecosystems are found on the slopes of mountains. The alpine climate in these regions strongly affects the ecosystem because temperatures fall as elevation increases, causing the ecosystem to stratify. This stratification is a crucial f ...
s, forest fringes, thick bushveld
The Bushveld (from af, bosveld, af, bos 'bush' and af, veld) is a tropical and subtropical grasslands, savannas, and shrublands, sub-tropical woodland ecoregion of Southern Africa. It encompasses most of Limpopo Province and a small part of ...
, gallery forests, flooded forest, swampland or cultivated areas as habitat
In ecology, the term habitat summarises the array of resources, physical and biotic factors that are present in an area, such as to support the survival and reproduction of a particular species. A species habitat can be seen as the physical ...
.[ It occurs up to 4,000 metres in altitude on ]Mount Kilimanjaro
Mount Kilimanjaro () is a dormant volcano in Tanzania. It has three volcanic cones: Kibo, Mawenzi, and Shira. It is the highest mountain in Africa and the highest free-standing mountain above sea level in the world: above sea level and ab ...
.[
Bushpigs are quite social animals and are found in sounders of up to twelve members, usually three to five. A typical group will consist of a dominant male and a dominant female, with other females and juveniles accounting for the rest. Groups engage in ritual aggressive behaviour when encountering each other, but will actually fight for large food sources. Sounders have home ranges, but are not territorial and different home ranges overlap. Groups generally keep away from each other. All intruders near the sounder are attacked, also non-bushpigs. Home ranges are 400 to 1,000 hectares, in ]Knysna
Knysna () is a town with 76,150 inhabitants (2019 mid-year estimates) in the Western Cape province of South Africa. and is one of the destinations on the loosely defined Garden Route tourist route. It lies at 34° 2' 6.3168'' S and 23° 2' 47. ...
(a forest region) the average was 720 hectare. Almost half the population consists of solitary wandering animals. Small bachelor groups of young males also form, these have ranges which overlay those of a few. The young males will avoid the sounders to escape confrontation. Litters of one to nine, usually three, young are born. From mating to the end of the gestation is a period of eight to ten months. After six months of age the alpha sows will aggressively chase the young males off, she will do the same to a few one to two year old beta sows. Young males are socially mature at 30 months of age. Mating mostly occurs in late autumn to early winter. Farrowing
Pig farming or pork farming or hog farming is the raising and breeding of domestic pigs as livestock, and is a branch of animal husbandry. Pigs are farmed principally for food (e.g. pork: bacon, ham, gammon) and skins.
Pigs are amenable to ...
may occur at any time of the year but there is a pronounced peak in the warmest part of the summer (from October to February in South Africa).[
The alpha sow builds a nest three metre wide and one metre high during the winter, with bedding consisting of stacked hay, twigs or plant debris from floods, to keep the litter of piglets for approximately four months while they wean. The males are the main care-givers, the sows only visit the nest to wean the piglets. Sows have six teats.][
They snort and grunt harshly while foraging or alarmed.][
The pigs are essentially ]nocturnal
Nocturnality is an animal behavior characterized by being active during the night and sleeping during the day. The common adjective is "nocturnal", versus diurnal meaning the opposite.
Nocturnal creatures generally have highly developed sens ...
, hiding in very dense thickets during the day. They never hide in aardvark burrows. Leopard
The leopard (''Panthera pardus'') is one of the five extant species in the genus '' Panthera'', a member of the cat family, Felidae. It occurs in a wide range in sub-Saharan Africa, in some parts of Western and Central Asia, Southern Russia, a ...
s are their main predator, combatting leopards has increased bushpig numbers.[
]
Diet and relation to humans
Bushpigs are very aggressive and extremely powerful, and can knock someone over, thus they should be feared. In one case a game scout was forced to spend three days in a tree. Wounded bushpig are very dangerous; their spoor should not be followed alone.[ They are fast, and can swim well.][
Bushpig will range up to 4km from their hide in a night to feed.][ A 1990 study in the Cape found an average daily movements of 3km, with an amplitude of 0.7 to 5.8km.][ They are omnivorous and their diet can include roots, crops, ]succulent plant
In botany, succulent plants, also known as succulents, are plants with parts that are thickened, fleshy, and engorged, usually to retain water in arid climates or soil conditions. The word ''succulent'' comes from the Latin word ''sucus'', meani ...
s, water sedges, rotten wood, insects, small reptiles, eggs, nestlings and carrion
Carrion () is the decaying flesh of dead animals, including human flesh.
Overview
Carrion is an important food source for large carnivores and omnivores in most ecosystems. Examples of carrion-eaters (or scavengers) include crows, vultures, c ...
.[ Tubers, bulbs and fruit are the most important food.][ Eggs and nestlings are also a favourite. Both fresh and very rotten carrion is eaten. Small young antelope are stalked and consumed.][ A behaviour observed in Uganda is to follow a troop of monkeys or baboons in the trees above to feed on the falling fruit and peels.][ During droughts high mortalities have occurred in South Africa.][ In South Africa, 40% of the diet was tubers and other underground plant parts, 30% was herbage, 13% fruit, 9% animal matter and 8% fungi.][
It is known for destructive ]grubbing Grubbing or clearing is the removal of trees, shrubs, stumps and rubbish from a site. This is often at the site where a transportation or utility corridor, a road or power line, an edifice or a garden is to be constructed. Grubbing is performed fol ...
, uprooting shrubs and scattering them around, unearthing all root crops, feeding on only a few, and trampling the rest.[ Favourite crops are pô-pô, sugarcane, bananas and maize. It cuts down such taller plants at their base to reach the fruit. Other favourite agricultural crops are beans, peas, groundnuts, sweet potatoes, pumpkin, potatoes, carrots, pineapple, spanspek, watermelon, nuts, alfalfa, and green pasture. Chicken pens are often destroyed and raided. There are also a few incidents of bushpig breaking into domestic pig paddocks to kill and eat both the sows and the young piglets.][
They are a significant ]nuisance animal
Nuisance wildlife management is the selective removal of problem individuals or populations of specific species of wildlife. Other terms for the field include wildlife damage management, wildlife control, and animal damage control. Some wild ani ...
in the agricultural regions, and are hunted fairly extensively. However, the population of bushpigs in many farming areas is stable or growing despite the hunting efforts, due to largely inaccessible terrain, abundance of food, lack of predators, relatively high reproductive potential, and their rapid ability to adapt to hunting methods. At camping sites they can also become a nuisance, learning to raid the tents.[ In Islamic parts of East Africa and parts of Madagascar, it is a further nuisance because, as it is a pig, it is not permitted to be eaten,][ although in some areas 'red' bushpig meat is not considered '' haram'' like 'white' pig meat. Some ]Zambia
Zambia (), officially the Republic of Zambia, is a landlocked country at the crossroads of Central Africa, Central, Southern Africa, Southern and East Africa, although it is typically referred to as being in Southern Africa at its most cent ...
n ethnicities also avoid bushpig meat, believing it harbours diseases such epilepsy
Epilepsy is a group of non-communicable neurological disorders characterized by recurrent epileptic seizures. Epileptic seizures can vary from brief and nearly undetectable periods to long periods of vigorous shaking due to abnormal electrical ...
.[ Its meat is considered a delicacy in South Africa; prices have fluctuated widely between 1995 to 2005.][ Throughout Africa, it is almost exclusively sold in local markets, although meat sometimes turns up in the larger towns or cities. It is often the main money maker for hunters in ]Gabon
Gabon (; ; snq, Ngabu), officially the Gabonese Republic (french: République gabonaise), is a country on the west coast of Central Africa. Located on the equator, it is bordered by Equatorial Guinea to the northwest, Cameroon to the north ...
, constituting up to 80% of the total income. Hunters generally consume only about a third themselves, the rest is sold as bushmeat
Bushmeat is meat from wildlife species that are hunted for human consumption, most often referring to the meat of game in Africa. Bushmeat represents
a primary source of animal protein and a cash-earning commodity for inhabitants of humid tropi ...
.[ In northern Zambian National Parks, it is sometimes a main target of poaching for bushmeat.] It is leaner than pork
Pork is the culinary name for the meat of the domestic pig (''Sus domesticus''). It is the most commonly consumed meat worldwide, with evidence of pig husbandry dating back to 5000 BCE.
Pork is eaten both freshly cooked and preserved; ...
.
Eradicating or controlling their numbers on the farm is quite difficult. They quickly learn to stay away from hunters, and will flee even when the hunter is still 200 metres away in thick bushveld. The best way to shoot one is to hide at one of its game trails towards a food source (called a 'restaurant') in the evening. Trapping also does not work easily, as bushpigs are wary of new and unfamiliar objects in their territories, and will avoid a trap for several months. They are also suspicious of unfamiliar objects such as cigarette butts on their trails or broken branches or scuff-marks in the soil, and will avoid the area when they find them. Using packs of specially trained dogs to hunt is more efficient, but dogs may be killed by the boars if they are not careful. Another way of killing the pigs is to make a large and very sturdy boma with a closing mechanism and regularly stock it with feed for a period of two or three months, before engaging the mechanism with a whole sounder or more inside. Setting this up must be done carefully by the same person alone in the same shoes, so as not to arouse the hogs' suspicion.[
In Southern Africa governments organise periodic culls to reduce bushpig numbers.][ The governments of ]Malawi
Malawi (; or aláwi Tumbuka: ''Malaŵi''), officially the Republic of Malawi, is a landlocked country in Southeastern Africa that was formerly known as Nyasaland. It is bordered by Zambia to the west, Tanzania to the north and northeast ...
and the Democratic Republic of the Congo
The Democratic Republic of the Congo (french: République démocratique du Congo (RDC), colloquially "La RDC" ), informally Congo-Kinshasa, DR Congo, the DRC, the DROC, or the Congo, and formerly and also colloquially Zaire, is a country in ...
(in the 1940s) also have. In Madagascar this might also be necessary to protect other native species. Such cullings have generally been unsuccessful.[
]
Conservation
The IUCN
The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN; officially International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources) is an international organization working in the field of nature conservation and sustainable use of natu ...
first assessed the bushpig as ' not threatened' in 1993,[ and ' lower risk' in 1996.][ It was assessed as ']least concern
A least-concern species is a species that has been categorized by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) as evaluated as not being a focus of species conservation because the specific species is still plentiful in the wild. T ...
' in their '' Red List'' in 2008,[ the 2015 assessment is identical to the 2008 one.][
There is no international trade in the species, save for a very small handful that have been exported to zoos. Populations are found in numerous well-]protected area
Protected areas or conservation areas are locations which receive protection because of their recognized natural, ecological or cultural values. There are several kinds of protected areas, which vary by level of protection depending on the ena ...
s throughout its range.[
]
References
External links
''Potamochoerus larvatus'', Bushpig
Animal Diversity Web
www.ultimateungulate.com
{{Taxonbar, from=Q430489
Potamochoerus
Mammals described in 1822
Taxa named by Frédéric Cuvier