Endangered Pigs

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The realm of pigs goes far beyond the domestic varieties you often see living on farms. Dozens and dozens of different species of pigs exist all throughout the planet, and lots of these swine don't share much beyond their characteristic round and upturned noses. A handful of pig species even have "endangered" population status due to slipping numbers.

Visayan Warty Pig

The Visayan warty pig (Sus cebifrons) is a species native to the Philippines that is critically endangered as of The International Union for Conservation of Nature Red List of Threatened Species 2008 assessment. No guesses for the remaining population of these deep gray pigs are available, although they may be already totally gone from several of their home islands, such as Masbate. Some of the primary factors to the population decline of the species are deforestation, logging activities and farmland development. Visayan warty pigs are also occasionally destroyed by farmers who consider them to be nuisances to their crops, as they frequently feed on them. They also are sometimes hunted for their flesh.

Javan Warty Pig

The Javan warty pig (Sus verrucosus) is an endangered species, and as with their Visayan warty pig counterparts, population figures are not available. Javan warty pigs live exclusively in Indonesia, specifically on the islands of Bawean and Java. Habitat loss is a severe risk for these black to golden brown pigs, along with poisoning and poaching activities. They are frequently poisoned by farmers because of their crop eating preferences.

Chacoan Peccary

The Chacoan peccary (Chacoan peccary) is an endangered creature that hails from South America's Brazil, Bolivia and Paraguay. These pigs possess stiff and coarse fur that is usually grayish to brown in coloration. A wide array of components contribute to the very low population of these New World pigs, including flesh hunting, habitat ruination and fragmentation, agricultural development and diseases transmitted among livestock animals.

Pygmy Hog

The pygmy hog (Porcula salvania or Sus salvanius) is a wee animal that has critically endangered status as of 1996. Population guesses for pygmy hogs are as drastically low as less than 250 adult specimens. These omnivorous brownish-black pigs live exclusively in India's Assam state. Some of the threats that pygmy hogs face include the rapid expansion of human establishments within their natural habitat, forestry and unlawful meat hunting activities.

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