THE BUSH PIG OR BOSCH VARK 



grey or a mixture of all these colours. Mottled 

 brown and pale grey is a common hue. The face 

 and mane are grizzled, a black spot is usually present 

 below the eye ; ears with tufts of long hair at their 

 tips. The adult boars have strong tusks which jut 

 out at the sides when the mouth is closed ; and a 

 pair of callosities or horn-like swellings of the skin 

 below the eyes. The young are striped rather 

 handsomely with yellow. North of the Zambesi, 

 in British Central Africa, these pigs are uniform 

 brownish-red and form a distinct local race, viz. 

 the Nyassa race already referred to. 



The Bush Pig can easily be distinguished from 

 the Wart Hog of South Africa by (i) its longer 

 and thicker hair, (2) pencilled tufts at the tips of 

 the ears, (3) the smaller size of the tusks. It is a 

 more noisy animal than the Wart Hog, and squeals 

 and grunts after the manner of a domestic pig. 

 Moreover, when running it holds both its head and 

 tail low ; the Wart Hog, on the contrary, holds its 

 head and tail erect when running. 



In West Africa, beyond the Zambesi, the Bush 

 Pig is replaced by the River Hog (Potamo cheer us 

 porcus). It is more brightly coloured than its 

 southern cousins. 



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