The red river hog (Potamochoerus porcus) or bushpig (a name also used for Potamochoerus larvatus) is a wild member of the pig family living in Africa, with most of its distribution in the Guinean and Congolian forests. It is rarely seen away from rainforests and generally prefers areas near rivers or swamps.
Description
thumb|right|240px|upright|The skull
thumb|240px|Male with distinct bony facial protuberances
The red river hog has striking orange to reddish-brown fur, with black legs and a tufted white stripe along the spine. Adults have white markings around the eyes and on the cheeks and jaws; the rest of the muzzle and face are a contrasting black. The fur on the jaw and the flanks is longer than that on the body, with the males having especially prominent facial whiskers. Unlike other species of pig native to tropical Africa, the entire body is covered in hair, with no bare skin visible.
Adults weigh and stand tall, with a length of . although other authorities dispute this. They typically live in small groups of approximately six to ten animals, composed of a single adult male and a number of adult females and their young. The boar defends his harem aggressively against predators, with leopards being a particularly common threat.
They communicate almost continuously with grunts and squeals with a repertoire that can signal alarm, distress, or passive contact. It uses its large muzzle to snuffle about in the soil in search of food, as well as scraping the ground with its tusks and fore-feet. They can cause damage to agricultural crops, such as cassava and yams. The male licks the female's genital region before mating, which lasts about five to ten minutes. Gestation lasts 120 days.