Potamochoerus larvatus

Taxonomy

Assessment Information

Geographic Range

Population

Habitat and Ecology

Threats

Conservation Actions

Taxonomy [top]

Kingdom	Phylum	Class	Order	Family
ANIMALIA	CHORDATA	MAMMALIA	CETARTIODACTYLA	SUIDAE

Scientific Name:

Potamochoerus larvatus

Species Authority:

(F. Cuvier, 1822)

Common Name/s:

English	–	Bushpig
French	–	Potamochère, Potamochère Du Cap

Assessment Information [top]

Red List Category & Criteria:

Least Concern ver 3.1

Year Assessed:

2008

Assessor/s

Seydack. A.

Evaluator/s:

Leus, K. ( Pig, Peccary & Hippo Red List Authority) & Hoffmann, M. (Global Mammal Assessment Team)

Justification:
Listed as Least Concern as the species is relatively widespread, common, and there are no major threats believed to be resulting in a significant population decline.

History:

1996

–

Lower Risk/least concern (Baillie and Groombridge 1996)

Geographic Range [top]

Range Description:	The Bushpig ranges from southern Sudan, Ethiopia and Eritrea southwards through East Africa and eastern and southern DR Congo to Zambia, Malawi and Mozambique. There are isolated populations in Angola (and nearby from the lower Zaire R. in DR Congo). In southern Africa, they are absent from Namibia, though they may occur in the Caprivi Strip. In South Africa, they are found in the northern and eastern parts of the country (and neighbouring Swaziland) to southern KwaZulu-Natal. There is then a break in their distribution and they reappear as an isolated population in the Eastern Cape and Western Cape provinces (Seydack in press). Introduced on Madagascar and the Comoro Islands (Mayotte) off the east coast of Africa (Vercammen et al. 1993).
Countries:	Native: Angola; Botswana; Burundi; Congo, The Democratic Republic of the; Ethiopia; Kenya; Malawi; Mozambique; Namibia; Rwanda; Somalia; South Africa; Sudan; Swaziland; Tanzania, United Republic of; Uganda; Zambia; Zimbabwe Introduced: Comoros; Madagascar; Mayotte
Range Map:	(click map to view full version)

Population [top]

Population:	Population density in the southern Cape forests, South Africa, range between 0.3 and 0.5/km² (Seydack in press).
Population Trend:	Stable

Habitat and Ecology [top]

Habitat and Ecology:	Bushpig are associated with relatively dense vegetation types with available food, cover and water, in forests and riverine or xeric scrub forests and thicket formations. In East and North-east Africa, they are recorded from the Ethiopian Highlands (Harenna Forest), the highlands of the Albertine Rift (where Red River Hogs have never been recorded), and Mt Kilimanjaro (to 4,000 m). They also occur in areas given over to subsistence farming or to agricultural crops such as sugar cane, maize, peanuts and beans, and may become a serious problem in such areas (Seydack in press).
Systems:	Terrestrial

Habitat and Ecology:

Bushpig are associated with relatively dense vegetation types with available food, cover and water, in forests and riverine or xeric scrub forests and thicket formations. In East and North-east Africa, they are recorded from the Ethiopian Highlands (Harenna Forest), the highlands of the Albertine Rift (where Red River Hogs have never been recorded), and Mt Kilimanjaro (to 4,000 m). They also occur in areas given over to subsistence farming or to agricultural crops such as sugar cane, maize, peanuts and beans, and may become a serious problem in such areas (Seydack in press).

Systems:

Terrestrial

Threats [top]

Major Threat(s):	There are no major known threats. They may be subject to localized declines and range contractions in some areas due to large-scale habitat destruction or as a result of hunting for crop protection and local consumption (Vercammen et al. 1993). In southern Africa, they are sporadically subject to official population control measures when they feed on crops. However, their preferred habitat, nocturnal habits and relatively high reproductive potential are such that it has proved generally difficult to eliminate Bushpig from larger tracts of relatively densely vegetated habitat (Seydack in press).

Major Threat(s):

There are no major known threats. They may be subject to localized declines and range contractions in some areas due to large-scale habitat destruction or as a result of hunting for crop protection and local consumption (Vercammen et al. 1993). In southern Africa, they are sporadically subject to official population control measures when they feed on crops. However, their preferred habitat, nocturnal habits and relatively high reproductive potential are such that it has proved generally difficult to eliminate Bushpig from larger tracts of relatively densely vegetated habitat (Seydack in press).

Conservation Actions [top]

Conservation Actions:	Bushpig are present in several well-managed protected areas across their range.

Conservation Actions:

Bushpig are present in several well-managed protected areas across their range.

Citation:	Seydack. A. 2008. Potamochoerus larvatus. In: IUCN 2008. 2008 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. <www.iucnredlist.org>. Downloaded on 03 December 2008.
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