Babirusa

About the babirusa

The babirusa profiled under this name is the Buru babirusa, a wild pig-like species native to the Indonesian islands of Buru and the two Sula Islands of Mangole and Taliabu. It is also known as the Moluccan babirusa, golden babirusa, and hairy babirusa — names that point to one of its distinguishing features, relatively long, thick, gold-brown body hair not shared by the other babirusa species. Until 2001, all babirusas were classified as a single species under the name Babyrousa babyrussa, with what is now recognized as the Buru babirusa treated as a subspecies. Since then, it has been recommended that the different babirusa populations be treated as separate species based on differences in their morphology, and much of the historical data collected before 2001 under the shared name actually refers to the better-studied North Sulawesi babirusa rather than to the Buru babirusa specifically.

Because detailed data on the Buru babirusa itself is limited, its habitat and ecology are generally assumed to resemble those of the North Sulawesi babirusa. The species lacks a rostral bone in its nose, the tool other wild pigs use for digging, which is why babirusas favor feeding on roots in soft, muddy, or sandy soils rather than digging in harder ground.

Behavior and diet

Babirusas are omnivorous, feeding on leaves, roots, fruits, invertebrates, and small vertebrates, and their jaws and teeth are strong enough to crack any kind of nut. Cannibalism has been reported in the species, with babirusas feeding on the young of their own species or of other mammals. The North Sulawesi babirusa, used as a proxy for describing the group's social behavior, forms groups of up to a dozen individuals, particularly when raising young, while older males tend to live alone.

Sexual maturity is reached at 5 to 10 months of age. The estrous cycle lasts 28 to 42 days, and gestation runs 150 to 157 days. Females have two rows of teats and typically give birth to one or two piglets weighing 380 to 1,050 grams (15 to 35 oz) and measuring 15 to 20 cm (6 to 8 inches), nursing them until they are 6 to 8 months old. Lifespan is about 24 years.

Range and habitat

The Buru babirusa is restricted to the Indonesian islands of Buru and the Sula Islands of Mangole and Taliabu. It occupies tropical rainforest, river banks, and natural ponds rich in water plants. Its total habitat area is restricted to about 20,000 km2 (7,700 sq mi), and that area continues to shrink due to logging.

Conservation status

The Buru babirusa is listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List, based on a 2008 assessment. Its habitat is restricted to a total area of about 20,000 km2 (7,700 sq mi) and is gradually being lost to logging, and hunting by local people is a second major concern.

The species carries a complicated cultural status on Buru: it is unpopular among Muslim communities for religious reasons but widely hunted by the island's predominantly Christian indigenous population, in part because its meat is low in fat, only about 1.27% compared with 5 to 15% for domestic pigs, and is regarded locally as a delicacy preferred in texture and flavor to other wild pig or deer meat.

Two protected areas on Buru, Gunung Kapalat Mada (1,380 km2 / 530 sq mi) and Waeapo (50 km2 / 20 sq mi), aim in part to preserve Buru babirusa habitat, and the species has had full protection under Indonesian law since 1931.