Wild Boar or Wild Pig (Sus scrofa)
WHAT
ARE BOARS?
Boars (a type of wild pig) are not native to North
America. They were brought here from Europe,
first by the Spanish explorers in the 1500’s (for food) and later in the 1900’s
by people who wanted to hunt the pigs for sport. The
wild boars you see today are the great grandchildren of European boars brought here a long
time ago. They are NOT pink with curly tails. Wild boars are large - sometimes 5 feet long, and
weigh up to 300 pounds. They have stiff black
fur and straight tails. The males (boys) have
tusks that curl out of their mouth. They are
not long like an elephant’s tusks, but they are still 2-5 inches long and can really
hurt you! (Girl boars have smaller tusks that
don’t stick out much.) Sometimes wild
boars will breed with pot-bellied pigs. The
babies will probably grow up to have black fur and straight tails, but they may have fat
bellies and a white stripe on their foreheads. HOW DO THEY LIVE IN THE WILD? Boars like to live in forests near streams or
ponds. Since boars don’t have any sweat
glands, they must wallow in the mud to cool off. Wallowing
may also help get rid of fleas and ticks. Boars
are fast runners and good swimmers. In the
autumn, they eat forest foods like acorns, hickory nuts, and pecans. During the rest of the year, boars eat roots,
grass, fruits, mushrooms, bugs, eggs, and even dead animals.
If there is plenty of food, the boars will stay in a 10 square mile
territory. They really dig up the ground while
looking for roots. Boars have tough noses, or
snouts, which help them dig. They have an
excellent sense of smell and can sniff out underground foods. Their eyesight is not very good, but they hear very
well. Their ears stand up straight; they
don’t flop down like a farm pig’s ears.
WHAT
ABOUT BABY BOARS? Mother boars usually have 1 litter a year, with as
many as 14 babies. The mother may build a ground nest of sticks and grass, or just scratch
together whatever leaves are on the ground nearby. Her
babies live here for 1 week until they are big enough to follow her around. They are born
with light brown fur that has white stripes from head to tail. Mother boars can be very dangerous when protecting
their babies; fathers live off by themselves. After about 45 days, the babies can find
their own food, but may still stay with the mother. When they are 4 - 6 months old, they
turn a cinnamon brown color. At 1 year old,
they are full-grown and have brown or black fur. Some
keep reddish stripes as adults.
WHY ARE THEY CALLED EXOTIC PESTS? Since boars are not native (from North America),
they are called “exotic” or foreign. They
are called “pests” for many reasons. When
they dig up the ground for roots, they kill many native plants. When they wallow near the edge of a pond, they tear
up the water plants. This causes the soil to
wash away (erosion) because the plant roots can’t hold onto the dirt anymore. Wild boars get into gardens and eat all the
watermelons and peanuts. They sometimes eat
eggs and babies of small native animals, including endangered species, like baby sea
turtles. They may also eat the acorns that
native animals, like deer and turkey, need for food. Boars
have very few natural predators. Because of
this, boars are often hunted to keep them from damaging the environment around them.
Rue, Leonard Lee III. Complete Guide to Game Animals. USA: Grolier Book Clubs, Inc. 1986.
Whitaker, John O. Jr. The Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Mammals. Alfred A. Knopf, Inc. New York: 1993.
"Boar." HYPP Zoology Home Page. Http://www.inra.fr/HYPPZ/RAVAGEUR /6susscr.htm. (1/12/98).
Frankenburger, Bill. E-mail interview. (3/5/99, 4/8/99).Provided by the Pelotes Island Nature Preserve
http://pelotes.jea.com