Rolling Hills Wildlife Adventure

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Fast Facts:

Pig" is an Old English word for the animal.
Porcus" is the Latin word for pig". It is possible that the "sooooeeeee pig" call used by farmers to get their pigs to come to them is derived from the family name "Suidae".

Bush Pig

Scientific Name	Potamochaerus procus
Classification	Phylum: Chordata, Class: Mammalia, Order: Artiodactyla, Family: Suidae
Status	Common. Numbers of this pig are increasing sharply, partly because their principal predators - leopards - have become rare.
Range	Africa south of the Sahara
Habitat	Terrestrial. Dense forest and underbrush
Diet	This pig feeds on almost anything, including vegetable matter, insects, eggs, and even dead animals.
Size	Weight: 120-180 lbs. Height at shoulder: 24 to 30 inches Tail length: 12 inches long
Lifespan
Location

Special Features

On the back of the bush pig there is a long whitish crest of hairs which can be erected when the animal is excited or alarmed.
The coat is long and bristly and varies in color from black in the southern and eastern forms to reddish in the western forms.
The tusks are short but sharp, and there are two warts on the snout in old males.

Social Structure & Behavior

The Bush Pig is nocturnal and spends the daylight hours hidden in the dense forest. This gregarious animal lives in groups of up to forty, although the average number is nearer twenty. The group moves together over large territories searching for food. In its search for roots and tubers it ploughs up large tracts of land and can cause serious damage to crops.

Reproduction:
The average litter has three to six young.