The Bearded Pig (Sus barbatus) in the 
Malay Peninsula. 
By H. C. Rospinson AND J.C. MovLron: 
We owe the remarkable discovery of the Bearded Pig in the 
Malay Peninsula to Dr. W. 8. Leicester an enthusiastic sportsman 
who obtained a single female specimen some years ago in the 
vicinity of Pekan, Pahang. The occurrence, however, was so remark- 
able and so at variance with preconceived ideas of geographical 
distribution that pending further evidence it was not considered 
advisable to place the occurrence on formal record. Now however 
that a further specimen has been obtained from the same locality 
there is no doubt whatever that the species must be regarded as a 
member of the peninsula fauna, though as noted below we think 
it not improbable that its presence is really due to some extra- 
ordinary change resulting in the landing of a herd from Borneo, 
the home of the true Sus barbatus, or from the Rhio Archipelago - 
where the rather dubious race S. barbatus ov is found. 
In answer to queries Dr. W. 8S. Leicester wrote under date 
March 19th. 1918, in reference to the original specimen—a fully 
adult female: “ Yes I am quite certain she was shot in the neigh- 
bourhood of Pekan. I remember a herd of this breed appeared 
in the neighbourhood and | shot this large sow and several half 
grown ones from time to time but could not get at the big boar 
which was very cunning and got away every time. They were 
some time about Pekan but eventually disappeared and I have not 
come across any since.” 
Dr. Leicester very kindly presented this specimen to the 
F. M. 8. Museums. 
Mr. J. E. Kempe, District Officer, Pekan, has now obtained 
the skull of a boar, which he has generously presented to the 
Raffles Museum, Singapore; he writes under date December 6th. 
1921: “It was shot by Towkay Lee Cheow,—an old Pekan character 
who has hunted and kept a pack these thirty years—about six 
weeks ago at a place called Sungei Genek, some two miles up river 
from Pekan town. He gave me the skull and the description and 
told me that in all his experience extending over thirty-three 
years, and including the slaughter of thousands of pigs he had 
never seen stichian-aniimal ey Gh See He told me that the 
remarkable things about it were its great length and height, but 
what impressed him most was the fact that it had a thick tuft of 
hair under each eye about two inches long and a good sized beard. 
“Tt weighed 180 katis (240 pounds) and was very emaciated. 
He said he thought, if in condition, it would have scaled 230 katis 
or more. It was a solitary boar.” 
Jour, Straits Branch 
