BEARDED PIGS
Bearded pigs (Sus barbatus) live in Malay Peninsula, Sumatra and Borneo and smaller islands in Indonesia such as the Riau Archipelago, Bangka, Karimata Island to the south, as well as Sibutu and Tawitawi islands in the Sulu Archipelago, and Balabac and Palawan and the Calamian islands in the western Philippines. [Source: Nicole Knibbe, Animal Diversity Web (ADW) /=]
Bearded pigs inhabit rainforests, mangrove thickets, and secondary forests in forests and rainforests. There are two recognized species: 1) Bornean bearded pig (Sus barbatus) , native to Sumatra, Borneo, and the Malay Peninsula, and is also called the Sunda bearded pig or bearded pig; and 2) the Palawan bearded pig (Sus ahoenobarbus) native to the Philippines
Bearded pigs have been extensively studied as sources of meat for local people, but not mucj is known about them or their behavior in the wild. They were kept in captivity until the middle of the 20th century. There is conflicting information about the size and weight. Some sources list them as weighing 41-120 kilograms while others list them at 100 kilograms or 150 kilograms. Their average lifespan in captivity is 16.2 years.
Although the number of bearded pigs has maybe declined due to habitat destruction, they are is still fairly common and are not endangered though there no accurate estimates of their population numbers. On the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List they are listed as Vulnerable. In CITES (Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild) they have no special status.
Due to their lack of shyness during migration and predictable times and routes of migrations, bearded Pigs have traditionally been easy prey for people that lived in the native habitat. Hunters waited along the borders of the migratory routes and killed the pigs as they come along. The pigs traveled in fairly large herds and were relatively defenseless and unable to flee.
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Bearded Pig Characteristics and Diet
Bearded pigs range in weight from 41 to 150 kilograms (90.3 to 330.4 pounds). Their body length is one to 1.7 meters (3.3-5.5 feet). The stand 0.73 to 0.85 meters (2.4-2.8 feet) at the shoulder height is. Their tail length is 20 to 30 centimeters (8-12 inches)./=\ /=\
Bearded pigs have the slimmest torso and longest head of all the living pig species. According to Animal Diversity Web: Distinguishing characteristics include two pairs of warts on the face with the first pair covered by the beard hair, thin whiskers on the face, and a two-rowed tail tuft. Pigs in general are medium sized artiodactyls with large heads, a short neck, and a powerful and agile body covered with a coarse bristly coat of hair. /=\
The Bearded Pig has a dark brown-gray coat with a distinctive white beard on the face. It has small eyes and fairly long ears, corresponding with a well developed sense of hearing. The snout ends in a mobile disk-shaped structure that bears the nostrils. The snout is prominent and the sense of smell is well developed. The snout has on it a set of tusks formed by the lower canine teeth. All pigs walk on the third and fourth digit of each foot, while the second and fifth digits are reduced in size and free from touching the ground. /=\
The Bearded Pig utilizes its long snout to dig in the ground for earthworms and roots. Fruit and gum tree seedlings are also part of the diet. Bearded Pigs often follow groups of macaques to feast upon the fruit that the macaques let fall to the ground. On the coast, they have also been known to feed upon dead fish that wash ashore. /=\
Bearded Pig Behavior and Reproduction Characteristics and Diet
Bearded pigs are motile (move around as opposed to being stationary) and sense using touch and chemicals usually detected with smell. According to Animal Diversity Web: For the majority of the year, Bearded Pigs live in one location in a stable family group. They are active during the day aside from times of migration, when they switch to activity at night.
Bearded pigs are unique among the pigs in the extensive migrations that they take. Several hundred animals join together for the purpose of migration. Yearlings have never been observed in the migrating herds, and it is probably for this reason that reproduction is timed so that yearlings are grown at the time of the annual migration. The migrating herds are led by old boars (male pigs). Travel is done at night on wide paths, which are well worn. During the day the pigs retreat to the thickets. The Bearded Pigs always travel by the same route and at the same time of year. During migration, the pigs are much less shy than usual. It is not clear whether the migrations are in response to variations in food supply or due to a regular migratory (make seasonal movements between regions, such as between breeding and wintering grounds), cycle. /=\
Sexual maturity is reached at roughly 18 months, although most males do not gain access to receptive famale until reaching physical maturity at four years of age. The bearded pig along with other pigs of the genus Sus produce lip gland pheromones (chemicals released into air or water that are detected by and responded to by other animals of the same species) and a salivary foam during courtship. During courtship the male chants while nudging the female's flanks and sniffing her genital region. The male repeatedly attempts to rest his chin on the females rump. In fully receptive females, the male chin resting on her rump stimulates her to stand in the position of copulation. Mating can last up to ten minutes, during which time the spiral penis fits into the grooved cervix and a plug is formed after copulation. /=\
The gestation period lasts roughly four months. When a pregnant female is ready to give birth, she leaves the herd and builds a litter nest on an elevation in the thicket. This nest can have a diameter up to six feet and a height of up to three feet. It is made of fern fronds, twigs, and dry palm fronds. On the litter nest, 2-8 young are born. In Borneo the number of young is usually only two or three. This small litter size is interesting considering the mother has five pairs of nipples. The coat of the infants is striped, with a dark brown stripe down the middle of the back and three yellowish and three dark brown stripes down the length of each flank. The piglets remain in the nest for ten days before following the mother. Weaning occurs at three months of age, but the piglets remain with their mother for roughly a year. /=\
Javan Warty Pigs
Javan warty pigs (Sus verrucosus) are also known as Javan wild pig. They are even-toed ungulates in the family Suidae and live on the Indonesian islands of Java and Bawean. They used to live on Madura but now are considered extinct there. The have been is listed as Endangered on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List since 1996. [Source: Wikipedia]
Javan warty pigs are found in secondary forest at elevation levels below 800 meters (2624.67 feet). Their distribution is fragmented, because human settlements and agricultural areas now occupy much of their original habitat. [Source: Sara McMahon, Animal Diversity Web (ADW) /=]
Javan warty pigs are regarded as crop pests and have traditionally been hunted for their meat. There are only a few Javan warty pigs in captivity, mainly in zoos in Eastern Java. Anitpredator adaptations have not been reported. However, they are good runners, and tend to stick to areas where there is cover when threatemed. Leopards prey on them. Tigers did in the past./=\
Javan Warty Pig Characteristics and Diet
Javan warty pigs range in weight from 44 to 108 kilograms (97 to 238 pounds) and have a head and bodylength that ranges from 90 to 190 centimeters (35.4 to 74.8 inches). Sexual Dimorphism (differences between males and females) is present: Males are larger than females. Ornamentation is different. Males are often twice the size of females. A gonion wart forms late in life for males on the back of their jaw. This wart appears where a long tuft of hair has been growing on the gonion. [Source: Sara McMahon, Animal Diversity Web (ADW) /=]
Javan warty pigs have a long-haired mane that runs down the nape of the neck, along the spine and all the way to the rump. Their mane becomes thinner as it extends towards the back of the animal. Their hair is usually a reddish, with their underside sharply marked as the hair becomes yellowish. The most distinguishing characteristic of Javan warty pigs are the three pairs of warts on their face. One pair is preorbital (in front of the eye sockets), and the other two are infraorbital (below the eye sockets) and larger mandibular warts located on the lower jawbone. /=\
Javan warty pigs have slender legs and a long tail. The tail has a small tuft of hair on it. The head is large, heavy and appears slightly convex when viewing it in profile. The face is long, and the ears are large. The dental formula is 1/3,3/1,1/2,3/3.
Javan warty pigs are omnivores (eat a variety of things, including plants and animals). Animal foods include small mammals. Among the plant foods they eat are leaves, roots, tubers wood, bark, stems, seeds, grains, nuts, vegetables, and human crops.
Javan Warty Pig Behavior, Communication and Reproduction
Javan warty pigs are terricolous (live on the ground), nocturnal (active at night), crepuscular (active at dawn and dusk), motile (move around as opposed to being stationary) and solitary. They are not very social. The females and their current young may are found together, but adult males remain solitary unless breeding. Javan warty pigs raise the long haired mane on the back when they feel threatened. The tail becomes erect and or curved when the animal is fleeing. [Source: Sara McMahon, Animal Diversity Web (ADW) /=]
Javan warty pigs communicate with vision, touch and sound and sense using vision, touch, sound and chemicals usually detected with smell. They warn each other of danger with a shrill whistle. These animals probably also use a variety of visual cues, and have some tactile communication, especially between mates, and mothers and their offpsring.
Javan warty pigs are iteroparous (offspring are produced in groups such as litters multiple times in successive annual or seasonal cycles) and engage in seasonal breeding. Females typically produce one litter per year. Breeding generally occurs between September and November, with births taking place in the rainy season. The number of offspring ranges from three to nine, with the average number of offspring being six. The mating system of this species has not been reported. However, other members of the genus Sus are polygynous and males compete aggressively for sexual access to females. (Nowak, R. meters., 1995) /=\
The average gestation period for Javan warty pigs is four months. Piglets are very small when born, weighing between half and one and a half kilograms, and have faint stripes. Females build a nest for the young, which are born pretty helpless, and nurses them for approximately three to four months. The young are born in the nest and stay there for some time. Weaning occurs around three or four months of age. Pre-weaning provisioning and protecting are done by females. Pre-independence protection is provided by females. Weaning occurs around three or four months of age. Females may reach sexual maturity as early as eight months of age but usually do not breed until they are 1.5 years old. Males do not breed until they reach full size and are capable of competing for females — around the age of five years.
Celebes Warty Pigs
Celebes warty pigs (Sus celebensis) are also called Celebes wild boars, Sulawesi warty pigs and Sulawesi pigs. They are common in northern, central and eastern parts of the Indonesia island of Sulawesi. They are also found on the neighboring islands of Selayer, Muna, Buton, Peleng, Lembeh and the Togain Islands. The species is now scarce in Southern Sulawesi and may also be extinct on the neraby Selayar due to the near cmplete deforestation of these areas. Wild pigs referred to as feral Celebes warty pigs have been extensively introduced in Indonesia on the islands of Halmahera, Flores, Timor, Lendu, Simeuleu, and Nias Islands. Domesticated forms of Celebes warty pigs can be seen on the islands of Roti and Savur. They and have been introduced to Australia. [Source: Nicole Noel, Animal Diversity Web (ADW) /=]
Celebes warty pigs occur in a wide variety of habitats on the Indonesian Islands, including rainforests, swamps, savannas, grasslands, high grassland terrains, high-elevation moss forests and agricultural areas. They are found at altitudes up about 2300 meters (7545.93 feet) but they prefer valleys. The distribution of Celebes warty pigs has been greatly increased by humans who introduced the animals to Halmahera, Flores and Timor when they become part of the local menu. On Roti, they were bred as domestic animals, but probably as a hybrid with Asian pigs. On Moluccas, the Aru Islands, and New Guinea (where they are known as Papua Pigs), piglets of this species have been reported to have actually been raised by the native women on their own breast milk! These pigs live half-tame and half-wild, voluntarily returning to the settlement at night when they are signaled by different drum signals of various owners. /=\
Celebes warty pigs are not endangered and are a relatively a common species. On the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List they are listed as Near Threatened. In CITES (Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild) they have no special status. There are places were they may be threatened.
Hunting, consumption by humans, habitat loss, interbreeding with domestic pigs and diseases picked up from domestic pigs are the main threats to Celebes warty pigs. A total of 2,317 pigs were harvested in regions of Northern Sulawesi as part of commercial hunting operations during 12 months in 1990 to 1991. Of these females were more susceptible to these.
Wild piglets are sometimes caught by villagers in Sulawesi are kept and raised for slaughter for eating or sold at the local market. The Minahasa people consider wild pig meat to be better tasting than domestic pork and are willing to pay 20 to 50 percent more for it. There are reports that organized commercial hunting is carried out even in designated reserves and national parks. A survey of three villages markets in northeast Sulawesi concluded that two to 20 wild pigs per week were brought in by commercial hunters and slaughtered for meat. /=\
Celebes Warty Pig Characteristics and Diet
Celebes warty pigs range in weight from 40 to 70 kilograms (88 to 154 pounds) and have head and body length that ranges from 80 to 130 centimeters (31.5 to 51.2 inches). Adult males stand an average of 60 centimeters (23.6 inches) at the shoulder. Their average lifespan in the wild is estimated to be around 10 years. Modern forms of these pigs are larger than the sub-fossil remains found in caves in Southern Sulawesi. Sexual Dimorphism (differences between males and females) is present: Males are larger than females. Ornamentation is different. Adult males develop three pairs of facial warts. The preorbital pair (in front of the eye sockets) are the largest. They don’t reach their full size until the pigs are at least eight years old. All the warts become larger with age. [Source: Nicole Noel, Animal Diversity Web (ADW) /=]
Celebes warty pigs have relatively short legs, and a long tail that is tufted. Their backs are short and slightly convex. The coat of Celebes warty pigs is often black with yellow and/or white hairs intermixed. Some individuals have a reddish/brown coat. The ventral side lightens to a creamy off-white with age. There is always a dark dorsal stripe, and a yellow band that encircles the snout. Distinctive tufts of hair are found on the forehead. Piglets are born with five dark brown and six light horizontal stripes along the length of their bodies, which tends to go away after about six months of age. /=\
Celebes warty pigs are primarily omnivores (eat a variety of things, including plants and animals). Animal foods include carrion, insects, terrestrial non-insect arthropods. Among the plant foods they eat are leaves, roots, tubers seeds, grains, and nuts fruit. They also eat fungus. /=\ Most feeding activity occurs during the daylight hours, with the most activity in the early morning and late afternoon.
Celebes Warty Pig Behavior
Celebes warty pigs are terricolous (live on the ground), diurnal (active during the daytime), crepuscular (active at dawn and dusk), motile (move around as opposed to being stationary), sedentary (remain in the same area), social (associates with others of its species; forms social groups). They communicate with touch and sense using vision, touch, sound and chemicals usually detected with smell. The size of their home ranges has not been reported. However, home range sizes of animals within their genus are around 500 to 1000 hectares for females, and 1000 to 2000 hectares for males. [Source: Nicole Noel, Animal Diversity Web (ADW) /=]
The basic social unit of Celebes warty pigs is the family group, two to three family groups associating in larger groups or herds. Males of their genus are thought to be mainly solitary, except during the breeding season. Some forms of physical aggression, including, leaning, shoving, and open mouth attacks have been reported. /=\
Pigs are usually mainly crepuscular and nocturnal. Celebes warty pigs therefore differ in that they are mainly a diurnal forager. Other members of the genus have been reported to wander a long way seasonally, as different sources of food become available. Other members of the genus have also been reported to construct crude form of shelter or canopy from matted grasses. This apparently helps them remain cool. All members of the genus are thought to wallow in mud.
Celebes Warty Pig Mating, Reproduction and Offspring
Celebes warty pigs are polygynous (males have more than one female as a mate at one time) and iteroparous (offspring are produced in groups such as litters multiple times in successive annual or seasonal cycles). They engage in year-round breeding and probably produce only one litter per year. Most matings occur in February. The number of offspring ranges from one to 8, with the average number of offspring being two to three. [Source: Nicole Noel, Animal Diversity Web (ADW) /=]
Among members of the genus Sus males compete for access to females, and are generally unable to effectively secure access to mates until they reach their full adult size. Adult males may have reproductive access to as many as 10 females, but around three is the norm. Females are reported to have an estrous cycle of approximately 21 days, during which the females are only sexually receptive for two or three days. Although not specifically reported on, it has been speculated that the warts found on male Celebes warty pigs play some role in reproduction, perhaps being attractive to females, or maybe serving some function in competition between males. /=\
The average gestation period for Celebes warty pigs is four to five months. Most births occur in April or May. Piglets weigh from 500 to 1,500 grams at birth. Unlike most ungulates, members of the genus Sus give brith to their offspring in a nest, where the offspring remain for some time. Females build large nests made of grasses, leaves, branches and twigs, piled over a shallow depression of two meters. The average weaning age is three to four months and the age in which they become independent is around one year. In the genus Sus, young often become independent of the mother prior to the birth of her next litter. However, female young may have a prolonged association with their mother. /=\
Young are altricial. This means that young are born relatively underdeveloped and are unable to feed or care for themselves or move independently for a period of time after birth. Pre-weaning provisioning and protecting are done by females. Pre-independence protection is provided by females. Mother care for their young, providing them with food (milk), protection, and necessary grooming. All that young pigs learn about life, they learn from their mothers. Male pigs are reported to be solitary except near the time of mating, and so do not typically participate in parental care.
The post-independence period is characterized by the association of offspring with their parents. Within the genus Sus, sexual maturity may be reached by a few months of age. However, most females don't breed until they are about 18 months old. Males, although capable of breeding at younger ages, are usually not able to secure access to mates until they reach their full adult size, around the age of five years.
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Text Sources: Animal Diversity Web animaldiversity.org ; National Geographic, Live Science, Natural History magazine, David Attenborough books, New York Times, Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, Smithsonian magazine, Discover magazine, The New Yorker, Time, Reuters, Associated Press, AFP, Lonely Planet Guides, Wikipedia, The Guardian, Top Secret Animal Attack Files website and various books and other publications.
Last updated January 2025