Giant Forest Hog
Hylochoerus meinertzhageni
📈🐗
Chordata
Mammalia
Artiodactyla
Suina
Suidae
Hylochoerus meinertzhageni
The Giant Forest Hog (Hylochoerus meinertzhageni) is the largest wild member of the pig family, a dark-coated, tusked browser that haunts the dense montane forests and savannas of central and eastern Africa. Despite its formidable appearance, it is a shy, social creature living in small herds led by a dominant boar.
Description
The giant forest hog is a robust animal with coarse black hair, massive facial swellings in males, and long curved tusks used for defense and dominance contests. It thrives in forest clearings, often venturing into meadows and swamps at dusk to graze on roots, grasses, and fallen fruit. Despite being one of the least-known large African mammals, its ecological role is significant—disturbing soil while rooting, spreading seeds, and serving as prey for leopards and lions.
Quick Facts
Max Mass
Shoulder Height
Standing Height
Length
Diet
Trophic Level
190
1
1.5
1.8
kg
m
m
m
Mixed Feeder
Omnivores – Balanced
Hunt History
Humans have hunted Hylochoerus meinertzhageni for millennia, both opportunistically and as part of subsistence bushmeat practices. Early Iron Age peoples likely pursued it with spears and traps near forest edges, drawn by its rich fat and durable hide. Traditional hunters in Uganda and the Congo still regard it as a prize animal, though its wary nature makes encounters rare.
Three archaeological and ethnographic contexts linking humans to this species:
Rwenzori foothills, Uganda (Late Holocene): Butchery marks on large suid bones in cave middens correspond to the size and morphology of Hylochoerus remains (~2,000 years BP).
Kibale Forest, Uganda (modern ethnographic record): Evidence of forest hog hunting using pitfall traps and snares recorded in the 20th century.
Central Congo Basin (Iron Age horizon, ~1,500 years BP): Charred bone fragments of large suids suggest long-term exploitation of forest pigs in mixed woodland habitats.
Time & Range
Extinction Status
Extant
Extinction Date
Temporal Range
Region
0
BP
Late Pleistocene
Africa
Wiki Link
Fat Analysis
Fatness Profile:
Medium
Fat %
5
Est. Renderable Fat
9.5
kg
Targeted Organs
Visceral & subcutaneous
Adipose Depots
Visceral/subcutaneous (general)
Preferred Cuts
Visceral depot
Hunt Difficulty (x/5)
3