| |
Range and Habitat: Wild boar are among the most widely distributed mammals on earth, ranging around the world from Britain, across Europe, through the Middle East and India, across Asia to Japan and most of North Africa. They live in a variety of habitats, most often in forests and woods. In Russia’s Far East, they are found in the southern forests.
Habits and Adaptations: They usually forage from dusk to dawn, but with resting periods both day and night. They rest in tight groups with bodily contact. They are excellent swimmers. Females and young live together in a small group called a “drift” or “sounder”. These groups usually number about 20 animals, but some have been found that are over 50 animals. They huddle together for protection and for shelter and warmth in winter. Adult males are solitary except during mating season. Young males form bachelor herds until about 4 years of age.
Diet: Almost anything they find, including nuts, berries, carrion, roots, insects, small reptiles and animals, and trash. In the southern forests of eastern Russia, they find large and nutritious Korean pine nuts, also called “bread of the forest”.
Breeding and Maturation: Breeding occurs year around in the tropics, but in the temperate zone, like Russia’s Far East, young are born in the spring. Just before giving birth the female builds a large, vegetation-lined nest. Usually 4-8 young are born after a gestation of 112 – 120 days, although up to 12 young have been observed. Each piglet has its “own” nipple from which it nurses exclusively. They have at least 10 vocal sounds and each mother recognizes her own young by their vocalizations. Piglets stay in the nest for the first 10 days, then stay with the mother before joining the sounder at about 3 months of age. They are independent at 3 to 4 months and sexually mature at 18 months. Life span in the wild averages 10 years and up to 21 years in captivity.
Miscellaneous: Wild boars are the ancestors of every domestic pig. It is native across much of Central Europe, the Mediterranean Region and much of Asia, and has been widely introduced elsewhere. It was believed to have been domesticated about 7000 B.C
|