Warthog - description, habitat, lifestyle

In a warthog everything is unusual, starting from the exterior and ending with lifestyles. This animal that lives on the African continent, gained fame thanks to the cartoon "The Lion King" - many liked the image of the resilient Pumba. How much the cartoon character fits real warthogs?

Appearance

Warthog is a type of wild boar and belongs to the order of artiodactyls. Like most other wild pigs, it has long canines sticking up from its mouth. They reach a length of half a meter and are a means to intimidate the enemy: because of the shape of the canines, the warthog is unlikely to be able to pierce someone with them. The animal has a large head with a dull elongated muzzle. From the crown itself begins a mane of red, hard hair, stretching to the end of the back.

The warthog got its name for subcutaneous fat growths located on the sides of its muzzle. There are six such growths, and they really resemble huge warts. The warthog has small eyes located near the forehead. Such a high planting of organs of vision provides the animal with a good overview of the terrain.

Warthogs have a massive body. Height at withers is 65-70 cm, weight is up to 100 kg in males and 70 kg in females. The skin is colored gray and covered with long sparse bristles. Its shade ranges from brown to light gray. The tail is thin and decorated with a slight thickening at the end. When a warthog is scared or wants to escape, he raises his tail up. For this habit, he got the joking nickname "Radio Africa".

Lifestyle and reproduction

Warthogs are spread throughout sub-Saharan Africa. They always live in the same area and do not make transitions without a critical need. They have a permanent den, which is not typical for wild pigs. They prefer to settle in the bush savannah, keeping away from the fields and forests.Warthogs are active during the day, hiding at midday from the heat in their burrows.

Warthogs are herd animals and live in groups of 4-16 individuals. As a rule, such a herd consists of adult females and children, while males usually keep alone. Warthogs dig holes for themselves, in which the whole family is compactly placed: children crawl forward into it, and adults move back so that their fangs are near the entrance to the hole. Then they will be able to frighten passing by enemies, the main of which is the lion. Sometimes warthogs do not dig a dwelling themselves, but occupy ready porcupine burrows. For self-digging holes they use the snout and canines, which dig the ground.

Warthogs feed on plant food, eating grass and shrub leaves. In order to get nutritious roots, animals fall on their forelimbs and are taken to tear the ground. They dilute their diet with berries and tree bark. Protein stock they replenish due to eating insects. Do not disdain from time to time to eat the carrion left after predators.

An interesting feature of warthogs is to bend the front legs at the knees when performing various actions. They assume this attitude when they drink water, dig holes and conduct ritual battles.As a result, corns are formed in mature individuals on the forelimbs. Speaking of ritual battles: they are not uncommon among males in the mating season. Warthogs arrange a contest for the attention of females, resting their foreheads and trying to move the opponent from the spot. At the same time, animal tusks are not set in motion, preferring to manage only with physical force.

The female carries young about 6 months. It is still not known exactly how many piglets are born in the litter. According to one version, there are two or three of them. On the other, the female gives birth to 6-8 cubs. But since her nipples are only 4, only half of the newborns survive.

Little warthogs do not yet have fangs and their pinkish skin resembles domestic piglets. From the very first days the female can leave the young for the whole day, leaving in search of food. The mother returns only twice a day to feed the piglets. After a while, the growing warthogs begin to get out of the hole and accompany the female in her trips, learning independent life. At the age of 1, the warthogs are ready to live separately from the parent and provide themselves with food.

The average lifespan of warthogs is 15-16 years.In captivity, they live a little longer.

Character

Terrible warthogs appearance is deceptive. In fact, these are quite calm animals that do not show aggression first. They behave cautiously, trying to avoid habitats of predators. If possible, the warthog will try to escape, rather than enter into an open battle. If the animal is weak or wounded, then it will defend to the last.

Warthogs are fearful and try to hide even from smaller animals. A wild pig also tries to avoid showing itself to his eyes, which is why this species is rather difficult to study by zoologists.

Relations with other species

Warthogs interact with other types of animals. For example, striped mongooses spend a lot of time combing out parasite boars from wool and eating them. During this class, the warthogs lie motionless.

Another example of this symbiosis is small birds that live near the holes of wild pigs. Warthogs attract many insects and parasites, which serve as the main source of food for birds.Using the dwelling of the warthogs as a feeder, birds with their voices warn the inhabitants of the burrow of the impending danger.

Wild pigs have enough enemies, among which are lions and leopards. Hyenas are also a danger to warthogs. Despite a significant difference in size, hyenas hunt young stock until their mother leaves the burrow. It influences the way hyenas hunt. They stumble into a pack and surround the victim, running near her and occasionally biting. Such actions exhaust large animals, and they prefer to give up. Therefore, an organized pack of hyenas can deal with a mature warthog.

Another threat to piglets - birds of prey. They track the victim from a height and wait for the female and children to travel a sufficient distance from the hole, after which they swoop down.

Preservation

Warthogs are not an endangered species and are not listed in the Red Book. Despite this, the number of animals in some regions is declining. This is due to the local population, which hunts warthogs for meat.Also, the warthogs are hunted due to the fact that they destroy plantations and fields, digging holes in them. And diseases that are carried by wild pigs are transmitted to domestic animals, causing loss of livestock.

Long legs allow the warthog to escape. Despite the fact that usually a warthog goes no more than 5 km in an hour, if a threat occurs, he is able to escape at a speed of 50 km / h. While running, they lift the tail, signaling danger to other animals. Their neck is very mobile, and even during the chase the warthogs can lift their heads high up and turn it around, which other pigs do not know how to do.

Interesting Facts

1. Despite the fact that warthogs do not use long canines for defense, they can pierce the attacker's skin with their lower canines, which also protrude upwards from the mouth.
2. The warthog is the only wild pig burrowing.
3. The range of sounds made by the warthog is very wide. This animal can grunt, squeal and snort, expressing these very different feelings. Wild pigs communicate in such a way as with each other, and give sound signs to other species.
4. In recent years, there have been frequent cases of warthogs settling within cities. This allows them to have access to landfills and get food from there.
5. In the Warsaw Zoo there was a case when a quarantined warthog escaped into the local forests. Despite the fact that the European climate is not very similar to the African one, the animal has long lived among the trees, leaving specific traces of its presence.

Video: Warthog (Phacochoerus africanus)