Pygmy hog

The pygmy hog ("Porcula salvania") is a suid native to alluvial grasslands in the foothills of the Himalayas at elevations of up to . Today, the only known population lives in Assam, India and possibly southern Bhutan. As the population is estimated at less than 250 mature individuals, it is listed as Endangered on the IUCN Red List.
Characteristics.
The pygmy hog's skin is nude and dark brownish-black with a few dark hairs. Its head is tapered with a slight crest of hair on the forehead and on the back of its neck. Its iris is hazel brown. It is about high and long with a short tail of about . It weighs . Adult males have the upper canines visible on the sides of their mouths.
Behaviour and ecology.
Piglets are born grayish-pink, becoming brown with yellow stripes along the body length. They live for about eight years, becoming sexually mature at one to two years old. They breed seasonally before the monsoons giving birth to a litter of three to six after a gestation of 100 days. In the wild, they make small nests by digging a small trench and lining it with vegetation. During the heat of the day, they stay within these nests. They feed on roots, tubers, insects, rodents, and small reptiles.
Taxonomy.
"Porcula salvania" was the scientific name proposed by Brian Houghton Hodgson in 1847 who described a pygmy hog from the Sikkim Terai. Later, the pygmy hog was moved with other pig species in the genus "Sus" and named "Sus salvanius". A 2007 genetic analysis of the variation in a large section of mitochondrial DNA suggested that the original classification of the pygmy hog as a distinct genus was justified. The resurrection of the original genus status and the species name "Porcula salvania" has been adopted by GenBank. The species name "salvania" is after the sal forests where it was found.
Distribution and habitat.
The pygmy hog used to be widespread in the tall, wet grasslands in the southern Himalayan foothills from Uttar Pradesh through Nepal, Bangladesh, northern West Bengal to Assam. By 2002, only one viable population remained in Manas National Park, which had been estimated to comprise a few hundred individuals.
Conservation.
The pygmy hog is designated as a Schedule I species in India under the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972, and offences against them invite heavy penalties.