Wild boar in nature: all about the life and habits of loppers

Wild boar (boar) is a large mammal from the order Artiodactyla. Scientists consider the historical homeland of the animal to be Southeast Asia. Subsequently, wild boars populated almost the entire territory of Asia and Europe, as well as some regions of Africa.

The forest boar has always been considered a valuable hunting trophy. Uncontrolled killing of animals has led to a sharp decline in the numbers of many species. At the beginning of the 19th century, the complete extermination of wild boars was recorded in some Scandinavian countries, in Libya, Egypt, and the northern part of Japan. On the territory of Russia, a catastrophic reduction in the number of animals was also noted, but the protective measures taken at the end of the last century made it possible to significantly increase the number of wild boars.

General characteristics and description

Wild boars are distinguished by increased endurance and the ability to adapt to various living conditions. They have a thick skin that protects them from enemies, and the accumulated subcutaneous fat layer helps maintain a stable temperature even in severe frosts.

Boars can swim. They are quite agile: if danger approaches, the animal can jump up to 4 m in length and 1.5 m in height. The maximum speed of the boar is 40 km/h, and it can cover distances of 10-15 km without rest.

Animals have a well-developed sense of smell and hearing.

What sounds does a boar make?

What does it look like

The boar genus includes several species with the following common characteristics:

• the body is short with a massive front part and long legs;
• the head is wedge-shaped, the snout is elongated and ends in a penny;
• males have huge fangs, the length of the lower ones can reach 20-25 cm;
• straight tail with a tassel.

The color of the bristles depends on the habitat. As a rule, the color contains gray, brown and brown shades. There are also pure black boars or very light, almost whitish ones.

What is the difference between a wild boar and a domestic pig?

Wild and domestic animals differ in body shape: in wild boars the front part is much wider, while in pigs the body has almost the same thickness along its entire length.

Expressed features of the wild boar’s adaptability to its environment also help to distinguish these two species:

• In wild animals, the bristles are long and thick; before the onset of cold weather, additional fur appears;
• to protect themselves from enemies, males have two pairs of noticeably protruding upper and lower fangs;
• Boars get most of their food in the ground, so their muzzle is more elongated.

Diseases

Here is a list of the most dangerous diseases of these animals.

Plague

The most dangerous disease of wild boars, which does not spare animals of all ages. The causative agent of this disease is a filterable virus. The disease is highly contagious. In a frozen boar corpse, the virus persists for up to six months, in a decomposing body - for several months. Since pigs live in herds, infection of one animal can lead to widespread disease and mortality. The virus also affects domestic pigs. The meat of a sick animal is edible after boiling for 1 - 1.5 hours. It is forbidden to bring shot carcasses into populated areas. Disinfection of meat is carried out in specialized enterprises.

Disposal of the corpses of dead animals is carried out by covering them with lime, followed by burying them to a depth of two meters. Prevention of mass infection of wild pigs is the shooting of sick individuals, as well as vaccination of animals.

Wild boars often suffer from plague, which greatly reduces their numbers.

Scabies

Affects animals during times of famine. By eating the corpses of animals affected by scabies, the boar itself becomes ill. By multiplying in the skin, the scabies mite causes hair loss and severe skin itching. Animals that stray from the herd are shot. The skin of the killed animal is disposed of. The meat is considered conditionally edible.

Kinds

Bearded wild pig
The genus of wild boars includes nine living species and one extinct species. Among them, the most interesting are the following:

• Bearded pigs . Found in southeast Asia. They can be recognized by the long light bristles that cover the snout and form a kind of beard.
• Javan pigs . Individuals are medium-sized, with long legs and a very elongated snout. A distinctive feature is the presence of three pairs of warts on the face. This wild boar is listed as an endangered species on the IUCN Red List.
• Dwarf pig . The smallest pig lives in southern Asia. Unlike other species, males live permanently in the herd and guard the queens and cubs. Pygmy pigs are also considered endangered.

Javan wild pig

The most numerous species is the common wild boar. It, in turn, is divided into several groups depending on its habitat:

• western;
• Indian;
• eastern;
• Indonesian.

Each of the listed groups includes from 2 to 7 subspecies.

Big Norma

Among the large boars, the American pig Big Norma or, as she is also called, Big Norma, especially stands out. Farmer Carrie Dart managed to raise a pet of incredible size. Norma reached a weight of about a ton (1200 kilograms), and the length of the boar was 2.5 meters.

After the death of the animal in 2008, an offer was made to make a stuffed animal, to which the owner of the record holder responded with a decisive refusal. He loved his pet and decided to personally bury the pig under a memorial sign.

How many years do wild boars live in the wild?

In their natural habitat, wild boars live 10-11 years, some individuals can live up to 14 years. The lifespan of animals depends on many factors. The main reasons for the premature death of wild boars are:

• attacks by predators (wolves, tigers, leopards, lynxes);
• skirmishes between males for territory or for a female during the mating season;
• lack of sufficient food supply due to drought or severe frosts;
• killing by hunters.

Some diseases can also shorten the lifespan of wild boars. When eating meat from an animal killed during a hunt, you must remember that some of it is dangerous to humans. Such diseases include trichinosis (infection by helminths living in muscle tissue), brucellosis (an infectious disease that affects joints, muscles and blood vessels), metastrongylosis (infection by helminths living in the bronchi and bronchioles) and others.

Wild boars kept in captivity or in protected areas live much longer. The absence of dangers, sufficient food and timely treatment significantly prolong the life of individuals. There are cases where animals lived up to 20 years.

BROWN BEAR

How to determine the age of a boar

Based on the external description of the animal, you can determine which of the three age groups it belongs to:

• piglets (young yearlings) have a short snout, small ears and covered with short bristles, sexual dimorphism is not pronounced, longitudinal stripes are clearly visible on the back;
• in gilts (two-year-olds) there is a noticeable difference between females and males, the front part of the body becomes more massive, the tail, snout and ears lengthen, the body is covered with thicker and longer hair;
• adult individuals have a powerful and short neck, a massive body, which makes the legs appear shorter, a clearly defined mane at the withers, and clearly visible lower fangs.

The age of a sexually mature animal can be more accurately determined by the number and condition of its teeth.

Behavior

Wild boar prefer water-rich, swampy areas, both wooded and overgrown with reeds and bushes. These are social animals that form herds with a matriarchal way of life. Old males usually live alone and join the herd only during the mating season.

Group Behavior

Females form groups of 10-30 individuals: cubs, young and weak males. The largest herds include up to 100 individuals. These groups move over long distances, but only within their own area of ​​1 to 4 km² and do not migrate.

Movement and orientation

The wild boar moves awkwardly, but quickly, swims well and is able to swim for quite a long time. Vision is poor: the wild boar does not distinguish colors, and will not see a person who stands 15 meters from it. Orients itself using smell, taste and hearing. The boar is cautious, but not cowardly, but if it is irritated, wounded or protecting its cubs, it becomes truly dangerous and aggressive.

Activity time and rest

Since this animal is susceptible to sudden changes in temperature, it rolls around in the mud a lot to protect itself from insects and burns, and to maintain an optimal body temperature. Wild boars are active mainly at dusk; during the day they lie down in dug holes up to 30-40 cm deep. In the evening they come out, swim and go in search of food.

How much does it weigh

Warthog
Adult size varies depending on the wild boar variety, with females typically being smaller than males. Below is the average weight of a boar of some representatives of the genus:

The largest boar killed during the hunt weighed about 500 kg. The trophy belongs to a hunter from Alabama, USA.

Difference from a pig

The wild boar and the pig are close relatives, coming from the same zoological branch, belonging to the same suborder of pig-like animals, but in the process of centuries of evolution, the domestic pig and the wild boar still acquired a number of differences:

A clear difference between a wild boar and a pig is shown in this photo, on the left is a pig, on the right is a wild boar.

Where does it live?

Indian

The historical range extends to Europe, the Middle East, India, most of the Asian continent, and northern Africa. Wild boars, which are found in America and Australia, are the feral ancestors of domestic pigs brought there by colonists.

Where does he live?

The traditional habitat of the wild boar is deciduous and mixed forests. The crowns of trees and shrubs that descend to the ground provide shelter for the animal and also provide food. You can meet a wild boar near rivers and swamps, where it hides in reed thickets. Wild boars also live in mountainous regions.

The wild boar is able to adapt to a wide variety of habitats

These artiodactyl mammals live throughout the globe, with the exception of Antarctica. Their natural habitat covers parts of Europe and Asia. In addition, wild boars were introduced to South and North America.

Preferred habitat types are tropical savannas, broadleaf, mixed and coniferous forests, woodlands, agricultural grasslands and wetlands. Boars live in areas with a constant source of water and dense vegetation cover, which provides them with shelter from predators.

They thrive in a variety of climates, but usually avoid cold and hot areas. In places with harsh winters and increased snowfall, population densities may be limited due to poor food sources. Deep snow and frozen ground limit the boars' ability to forage for roots and leaves.

Habits

Wild boars lead a predominantly gregarious lifestyle. They gather in herds that include several females and their young. Adult males prefer to live separately and join groups only during the rut. When two loppers join the herd, skirmishes occur between them for the right to cover the females.

During the daytime, the animals hide in a den made of branches and grass. The shelter is usually located in thickets of bushes or tall grass. Wild boars overwinter in pits: they tear up the snow, dig out last year's leaves and lay down on them.

Despite its threatening appearance, the wild boar is a cautious animal: it moves carefully through the forest, and upon hearing loud sounds or foreign odors, it immediately hides in a shelter and remains there, waiting out danger.

FOX

Unforeseen collision

If all precautions have been taken, but a dangerous surprise still occurs, you need to follow some rules to avoid consequences. What to do if you meet a wild boar in the forest?

Take into account a few of the most important techniques. You shouldn't run, you need to stay calm. The boar will smell the person and leave, not seeing the danger.

But if the boar is scared, angry, or you met him during the rutting period, or disturbed a female with piglets, then things are bad. When the animal attacks, nothing can scare it.

If a boar is angry, it knows no fear. And since the animal runs fast (30 km/h), it will catch up with a person in no time. Therefore, there is no point in fleeing from him. But he is not able to slow down or turn to the side. Therefore, the correct way out of this dangerous situation is to jump to the side. But this requires good skill. Few people have managed such a trick. If you manage to do this, you can consider yourself saved - the boar rarely comes back. If he nevertheless rushes a second time, you must again jump to the side and dodge until you reach the shelter.

There is no point in defending yourself, it will not bring results. A knife blow or shot must be very well aimed and aimed at the eye, neck or ear.

There is a safer option - climb a tree and sit there for a while. At first the boar will watch you below, but after a while he will leave.

What does it eat?

Representatives of the boar genus are classified as omnivores. Their diet may vary depending on the time of year and habitat, while most of the food is obtained from the soil.

In spring, when the ground becomes soft, wild boars eat plant rhizomes, preferring juicy tubers and bulbs. They can also feed on last year's acorns and other fruits and seeds of plants preserved in the ground. After the grass cover appears, the animals eat young shoots of sedge, nettle, and marigold.

In summer, when the vegetation becomes dry and tough, wild boars again switch to rhizomes. Tearing up the ground in search of roots and tubers, they happily eat worms and insect larvae found in the ground.

At the end of summer and autumn, the main part of the diet consists of nuts, berries, fruits of bushes and trees. In winter, wild boars' diet consists of rhizomes and animal food (water rats, mice and other rodents). With a lack of food supply, they have to feed on dry leaves, moss, bark and branches of bushes.

It is known that wild boars eat spawning fish swimming in shallow waters and destroy bird nests, eating eggs and chicks.

Nutrition

What does a wild boar eat? Being an omnivore and having a formidable appearance, the wild boar still prefers various plant foods: acorns, root vegetables, berries and mushrooms. In winter, during a shortage of plant food and, moreover, cold weather, wild boars switch to a more satisfying diet; they can eat carrion, bird eggs, and larvae found on the ground and under the bark of some trees. By eating these larvae, which are often pests of trees, wild boars bring great benefits to the forest.

An adult boar eats up to 6 kg of food per day, and they also need a large amount of water. When coming to a river or lake to drink, wild boars are not averse to eating fish.

Reproduction

Puberty in male wild boars occurs in the 4-5th year of life, females are ready to breed in the second year. The rutting period occurs in the winter months. Males, using tracks and marks, find a group of females with grown cubs and live in the herd for some time. Usually the cleaver covers all mature females, after which it leaves the group again.

A female wild boar bears offspring for 4 months. Feeling the approach of childbirth, she finds a secluded place in the forest and prepares a nest there from grass and leaves. A litter usually contains 8-10 piglets, weighing up to 1 kg.

Wild boar cubs feed on their mother's milk for up to 3 months and continue to stay with her for up to 7 months. Usually only half of the individuals from the litter survive, the rest become victims of predators or cannot tolerate harsh living conditions.

Natural enemies

In addition to people, wild boar, mainly young animals, are threatened by wolves and lynxes, and in Asia by leopards and tigers, which occasionally attack adult males. Large snakes and birds of prey can also attack baby piglets. In general, the population is stable and is not under threat of extinction or destruction.

Why is it dangerous for humans?

Boars are not known for their aggressive behavior and, if possible, try to avoid meeting people. Often cases of animal attacks are provoked by the person himself. In spring and early summer, the cause of aggression may be the protection of the cubs by the female. During this period, piglets become more independent and move away from their mother in search of food. If you see a piglet in the forest, you should not approach it, much less pick it up, otherwise you may encounter a dangerous enemy - an angry female. Guided by maternal instinct, she becomes aggressive and ferocious, and will protect her offspring, regardless of the wounds inflicted on her.

A meeting with a wild boar that has been injured during a hunt is also dangerous. The beast is distinguished by its endurance and strength, so situations often occur when it cannot be killed on the first try. The cleaver boar is especially dangerous, capable of inflicting quite serious and even fatal wounds with its fangs.

If you find yourself face to face with an angry animal, you should not turn your back to it and run away. You can escape from a wild boar in a tree.

NOBLE DEER

Features of hunting

Man is one of the most dangerous enemies of the wild boar. A trophy in the form of a boar's head with tusks is the object of every hunter's dreams. Wild boar meat is tasty and healthy. Bristles are also used for the production of brushes, razor brushes and combs. Boar bristles are also suitable for making painting brushes.

Hunting wild boars is a very popular pastime.

They hunt forest pigs with dogs. Horseback hunting for wild boars is popular in forest-steppe regions. This occupation is quite dangerous. The animal itself is not aggressive, but if you frighten or anger it, it can easily stand up for itself. This is especially true for females with cubs.

Interesting Facts

• Boars are among the ten most intelligent animals; they are very smart and observant.
• Boars' sense of smell is better developed than that of dogs: they can easily find food in the ground by smell. Noticing this feature, people taught wild boars to look for truffles - the most expensive mushrooms in the world, growing at a depth of 30 cm and below.
• Boars constantly sharpen their upper and lower tusks by rubbing them against each other.
• The wild hog is one of the first domesticated animals. It is known that the ancestors of modern pigs were domesticated by humans more than 10 thousand years ago in Asia.
• Boars and pigs are unreasonably called dirty: these animals are very clean, and traditional water and mud baths are just a way to get rid of parasites and cleanse stubble.

Piglets have a high mortality rate

At birth, piglets have very little fat and minimal energy reserves. By producing more young, females increase the chances of some offspring surviving. Sows with large litters have been known to accidentally crush their offspring. However, research suggests that this may be a deliberate action aimed at increasing the chances of survival of the rest of the litter. Reduced competition between piglets for feeding is a result of smaller litter sizes. Weaker piglets may try to feed several times before they are beaten by other young animals and simply die from malnutrition.

Females that farrow around the same time may allow piglets from another litter to nurse. However, more often sows refuse other people's piglets.

The largest breeds of domestic pigs

Representatives of domestic pig breeds are also distinguished by their large body weights. Let's look at some of them. Large breeds with a large body weight include: Landrace, Duroc and large white pigs. When putting them to fattening and following the standards of maintenance and feeding, good results can be achieved. It should be taken into account that all livestock, under the same conditions, gain approximately the same live weight, corresponding to their natural qualities.

Large white breed

Selection work lasted for quite a long time in England; it was based on the largest breeds of pigs that were known at that time. Scientists selected the largest piglets for further reproduction, thereby gradually forming a livestock with a good productivity indicator. After which the large white was used to improve the productive qualities of other breeds. The large white, in various varieties, is found in many countries around the world. An adult boar has a live weight of 330-350 kg; at 6 months, young boars reach a weight of 100 kg.

Boar families

Sexual maturity of females occurs at approximately one and a half years of age. A male boar is capable of starting a family starting from the age of two. In the wild boar community, it is customary to fight for territories and females, and the winner gets not one, but several ladies at once.

Pregnancy lasts about 130 days. Usually piglets are born in April. Having farrowed, the wild pig feeds the striped babies with milk. If she needs to leave the nest, she securely digs in the babies and covers them with branches and leaves. Until the children grow up, the young mother will not return to the pack and will lead a solitary life.