Pygmy Hog (Porcula salvinia/Sus salvanius)

Pygmy Hogs Reintroduced in Assam

Context (TH | IE): Eighteen captive-bred pygmy hogs are released in Assam’s Manas National Park, their historical habitat, under the Pygmy Hog Conservation Programme (PHCP).

PHCP was launched in 1996 by the Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust along with the MoEF, the IUCN, and local NGOs, EcoSystems India & Aaranyak.
It maintains a captive population and reintroduces hogs in protected areas of Assam.

Pygmy hogs are an indicator species.
Pygmy hogs only live in the wet high grasslands at the foothills of the Himalayas.
It is also the habitat for other rarities such as the one-horned rhinoceros, hog deer, Eastern barasingha, tiger, water buffalo, lesser florican and the hispid hare.
So, if pygmy hogs are not around, it means something is seriously wrong with the habitat, which, in turn, would endanger the fate of the other animals.

Indicator species presence, absence or abundance reflects a specific environmental condition.

It is a UNESCO Natural World Heritage site located on the Himalayan Foothills.
It is contiguous with the Royal Manas National Park (Bhutan).
Manas River (a tributary of Brahmaputra) passes through the heart of the National Park.
The bhabar-terai region with riverine succession makes it one of the richest areas of biodiversity.
Vegetation: Semi-evergreen forests, moist & dry deciduous forests, savanna woodland, & grasslands.
Major Fauna: Hispid hare, pygmy hog, wild water buffalo, rhinoceros (reintroduced in 2007), elephants, sambar, Chinese pangolin, clouded leopards.
Major Avifauna: It has the world’s largest population of the endangered Bengal florican. Other major bird species include great hornbills, pelicans, eagles, and herons.