Warthog
Conservation status
Least Concern
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Class: Mammalia Order: Artiodactyla Family: Suidae Genus: Phacochoerus Species: P. The conservation status of a Species is an indicator of the likelihood of that species remaining extant either in the present day or the near future Least Concern ( LC) is an IUCN category assigned to extant species or lower taxa which have been evaluated but do not qualify for any other category Chordates ( Phylum Chordata) are a group of Animals that includes the Vertebrates together with several closely related Invertebrates Mammals ( class Mammalia) are a class of Vertebrate Animals characterized by the presence of Sweat glands, including sweat glands The even-toed ungulates form the Mammal order Artiodactyla. They are Ungulates whose weight is borne (if they have more than two toes about Suidae is the biological family to which Pigs and their relatives belong UserPolbot. --> Phacochoerus is a genus of Even-toed ungulate in the Suidae family comprising 2 africanus
Binomial name
Phacochoerus africanus (Pallas, 1766)
Distribution of the Common Warthog     Possible range or accidental records

The warthog or common warthog (Phacochoerus africanus, "African Lens-Pig") is a wild member of the pig family that lives in Africa. Peter Simon Pallas ( September 22, 1741, Berlin — September 8, 1811, Berlin) was a German Zoologist Suidae is the biological family to which Pigs and their relatives belong The common name comes from the four large wart-like tusks found on the head of the warthog, which serve the purpose of defense when males fight. They are the only widely recognised species in their genus, though some authors divide them into two species. A genus (plural genera from Γένος Latin genus "descent family type gender" is a low-level Taxonomic On that classification, P. africanus is the common (or northern) warthog and P. aethiopicus is the desert warthog, also known as the Cape or Somali warthog. UserPolbot. -->The Desert Warthog ( Phacochoerus aethiopicus) is a species of Even-toed ungulate in the

Subspecies

• Northern warthog (Phacochoerus africanus africanus)
• Eritrean warthog (Phacochoerus africanus aeliani)
• Central African warthog (Phacochoerus africanus massaicus)
• Southern warthog (Phacochoerus africanus sundevallii)

Description

Warthogs range in size from 0. 9 to 1. 5 metres (2. 9-4. 9 feet) in length and 50 to 150 kg (110-330 pounds) in weight. A warthog is identifiable by the two pairs of tusks protruding from the mouth, which are used as weapons against predators. A tusk is an extremely long Incisor Tooth of certain Mammals that protrudes when the Mouth is closed The upper canine teeth can grow to 9 inches (23 cm), and are of a squashed circle shape in cross section, almost rectangular, being about 1¾ in (4. "Cuspid" redirects here For the heart valves see Bicuspid valve and Tricuspid valve. In Geometry, a cross section is the intersection of a body in 2-dimensional space with a line or of a body in 3-dimensional space with a plane etc 5 cm) deep and 1 in (2. 5 cm) wide. The tusk will curve 90 degrees or more from the root, and the tusk will not lie flat on a table, as it curves somewhat backwards as it grows. The tusks are used for digging, for combat with other hogs, and in defence against predators -- the lower set can inflict severe wounds.

Warthog ivory is taken from the constantly growing canine teeth. Ivory is formed from Dentine and constitutes the bulk of the Teeth and Tusks of animals such as the Elephant, Hippopotamus, Each warthog has a pair of teeth in each jaw with the lower teeth being far shorter than the upper teeth. Both pairs grow upwards, with the upper teeth being by far the more spectacular in appearance. The lower pair, however, are the more dangerous: the teeth are straight, sharply pointed, and keep a keen edge by the upper pair rubbing against the lower pair. The tusks, more often the upper set, are worked much in the way of elephant tusks with all designs scaled down. Tusks are carved predominantly for the tourist trade in East and Southern Africa.

Ecology

Warthog digging

Although warthogs are commonly seen in (and associated with) open grasslands, they will seek shelter and forage in denser vegetation. In fact, warthogs prefer to forage in dense, moist areas when available. The common warthog diet is omnivorous, composed of grasses, roots, berries and other fruits, bark, fungi, eggs, dead animals, and even small mammals, reptiles and birds. The diet is seasonably variable, depending on availability of different food items. Areas with many bulbs, rhizomes and nutritious roots can support large numbers of warthogs. In Botany, a rhizome is a horizontal stem of a Plant that is usually found underground often sending out Roots and Shoots Warthogs are powerful diggers, using both heads and feet. When feeding, they often bend the front legs backwards and move around staying on the knees. Although they can dig their own burrows, they commonly occupy abandoned aardvark burrows. The Aardvark ( Orycteropus afer) ("Digging foot" is a medium-sized burrowing nocturnal Mammal native to Africa. The warthog commonly enters burrows "back-end first", with the head always facing the opening and ready to burst out as needed.

Warthogs are fast runners and quite capable jumpers. They will often run with their tails in the air. Despite poor eyesight, warthogs have a good sense of smell, which they use for locating food, detecting predators and recognizing other animals.

Although capable of fighting, and males will aggressively fight each other during mating season, a primary defense is to flee by means of fast sprinting. The main warthog predators are humans, lions, leopards, crocodiles, and hyenas. The lion ( Panthera leo) is a member of the family Felidae and one of four Big cats in the Genus Panthera. The leopard (lɛpɚd Panthera pardus) is an Old World Mammal of the Felidae family and the smallest of the four roaring A crocodile is any Species belonging to the family Crocodylidae (sometimes classified instead as the Subfamily Crocodylinae) The Hyaenidae is a Mammalian family of order Carnivora. The Hyaenidae family native to both African and Asian continents consists of four Cheetahs are also capable of catching small warthogs. The cheetah ( Acinonyx jubatus) is an atypical member of the cat family ( Felidae) that is unique in its speed while lacking climbing abilities

Warthogs have been observed allowing banded mongooses groom them to remove ticks. The banded mongoose ( Mungos mungo) is a Mongoose commonly found in the central and eastern parts of Africa. Tick is the common name for the small Arachnids in Superfamily Ixodoidea that along with other Mites constitute the Acarina. ^[1]

Longevity

Wild warthogs can live up to 15 years, and captive warthogs may live as long as 18 years. The typical gestation period is 5 or 6 months and the litter is 2 to 8 piglets, although 2 to 4 is more typical. Gestation is the carrying of an Embryo or Fetus inside a Female Viviparous Animal. For other meanings of litter see Litter (disambiguation. A litter is the offspring at one birth of Animals from the same mother and usually Piglets are weaned at 3 or 4 months of age, reaching sexual maturity at 18 to 24 months. Females may give birth twice or, in extremely rare cases, up to five times per year.

See also

References in pop culture

Fictional warthog characters are common in popular culture worldwide, including Pumbaa from The Lion King, Reynold from Jungle Jam and Friends: The Radio Show!, Bebop from Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Herbert from 64 Zoo Lane, Wally in Rampage: Total Destruction, Crabs the warthog doll from Cow and Chicken, the crime-fighting Wonder Wart-Hog, and Ms. Timon and Pumbaa are a fictional Meerkat and Warthog duo first introduced in Disney 's popular 1994 animated film The Lion King The Lion King is a 1994 American animated feature film produced by Walt Disney Feature Animation, released in theaters on June 15 1994 Jungle Jam and Friends The Radio Show!, or just Jungle Jam, is a radio show with Evangelical Christian themes as well as witty writing Bebop and Rocksteady are fictional characters in the 1987 Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles cartoon series and the Archie TMNT Adventures comics as well as most Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (known as Teenage Mutant Hero Turtles in the United Kingdom, Ireland and some other European countries 64 Zoo Lane is a children's television programme created by An Vrombaut. Rampage Total Destruction is the latest sequel to the Rampage arcade game produced by Midway Games. Cow and Chicken was an Emmy Award -nominated American Animated television series, created by David Feiss. Mucus from Camp Lazlo. Camp Lazlo is an award-winning American Animated television series created by Joe Murray, produced by Cartoon Network Studios. The presumed ugliness of warthogs is the basis for other references, such as the Foxtrot comic strip and in other cartoons such as The Far Side and provides the title for the long-lasting Finnish humor magazine Pahkasika ("Warthog" in Finnish). The Far Side is a popular one-panel syndicated comic created by Gary Larson. Finland, officially the Republic of Finland ( is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of northern Europe. Pahkasika ( Finnish for " Warthog " was a Finnish adult humour Magazine, edited by Markku Paretskoi and published Finnish ( or suomen kieli) is the language spoken by the majority of the population in Finland (92% As of 2006) and by ethnic Finns outside

The A-10 Thunderbolt II aeroplane is nicknamed "Warthog", as is a vehicle in the Halo video game series. Halo is a Science fiction Video game franchise created by Bungie and owned and published by Microsoft Game Studios. Warthogs themselves appear as a form of transport in the video game Crash Bandicoot. Crash Bandicoot is a platform game published by Sony Computer Entertainment and developed by Naughty Dog for the PlayStation "Wart Hog" is also a song by punk rock group The Ramones, found on their album Too Tough to Die. The Ramones were an American rock band often regarded as the first Punk rock group Too Tough to Die is the eighth album by the Ramones, released in 1984 (see 1984 in music)

The Winston-Salem minor league baseball team from North Carolina, USA is named the "Warthogs", inspired in the early 1990s by the arrival of warthogs at the North Carolina Zoo. The Winston-Salem Warthogs are a Minor league baseball team in Winston-Salem North Carolina, USA. Part of the History of baseball series Minor league baseball is a hierarchy of Professional baseball leagues in North North Carolina ( is a state located on the Atlantic Seaboard in the southeastern United States The United States of America —commonly referred to as the North Carolina Zoological Park is located in Asheboro, which is about 75 Miles (120 km) west of Raleigh North Carolina in the United

References

• Pigs & Peccaries Specialist Group (1996). Phacochoerus africanus. 2006 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species (also known as the IUCN Red List or Red Data List) created in 1963 is the world's most comprehensive inventory of the global IUCN 2006. Retrieved on 12 May 2006.
• (Common) Warthog at Animal Diversity Web

• The Zoo Pen (actual footage of a Warthog)