WILD PIGS 241 



for whatever work the head is called upon to perform, it does not 

 bend under the strain, no matter how violent the labour involved 

 may be. It may be thought perhaps by the casual observer that 

 too much stress has been laid upon the feeding habits of this and 

 other kinds of animals treated of in this book, but an instance of 

 how important it is to pay some amount of regard to these is well 

 exemplified in the case of the Wild Pigs, for, as a matter of fact, 

 the method of feeding accounts for their distribution. They inhabit 

 Southern and Central Europe, Northern Africa and West and 

 Central Asia, and thus it is obvious that in countries where 

 any prolonged frosts are experienced the Wild Boar cannot find a 

 congenial home; consequently it is not found there. 



We may now briefly consider the animal under review from the 

 position it occupies in the economy of nature and in regard to man. 

 Has it any enemies, and if so, what are they ? What damage does 

 it perpetrate, and to what extent, and what are the animal's uses? 

 The answer to the first question is that since the Wolf and the 

 Lynx have disappeared from the haunts of the Boar, it has few, if 

 any, enemies, with the exception of man himself. He likes it because 

 of the sport which it affords, and probably he alone would regret 

 its total abolition, though the Zoologist would also no doubt not 

 agree to its extinction without dissent. It is stated that the Fox does 

 attack young Wild Boars, and that in some regions the larger Wild 

 Cats may be considered enemies of this beast, but it is pretty well 

 calculated to take care of itself either when attacked by man or wild 

 creatures, for by means of its powerful tusks it can direct ominous 

 blows at its adversary. The blows are always directed upwards, the 

 tusks "at every movement of the lower jaw are whetted against each 

 other, and thus remain constantly sharp and pointed," and it is said 

 that a single blow is sufficient to rip open the belly of a dog. The 

 Domestic Pig, it will doubtless have been noticed, has not lost the 

 blind rage of its wild cousin, and I have myself seen Pigs assume 

 quite a threatening attitude, although in their case, of course, being 

 minus the tusks, little harm is likely to be done. 



Mention has already been made as to the amount of damage that 

 Wild Swine are capable of doing when they frequent the vicinity of 

 lands that bear crops, and it can be imagined how a herd can devas- 

 tate whole areas when once they start on a foraging expedition. In 

 consequence of this, few there are who are willing to say much in 

 favour of this beast; it has been relentlessly persecuted in some 



