Razorback
| Razorback | |
|---|---|
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| A pair of razorbacks on Merritt Island, Florida | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Order: | Artiodactyla |
| Family: | Suidae |
| Genus: | Sus |
| Species: | S. scrofa |
| Binomial name | |
| Sus scrofa Linnaeus, 1758 |
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Razorback is an Americanism, loosely applied to any type of feral pig, wild boar or cross in North America. Common wild boar (Sus scrofa scrofa) are sometimes called "Russian boar" or "Russian razorbacks". The term "Razorback" has also appeared in Australia, to describe such animals there.
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Introduction to the Americas [edit]
Domestic pigs were first introduced to the Americas in the sixteenth century.[1]
Christopher Columbus is known to have intentionally released domestic swine in the West Indies during his second voyage in order to provide future expeditions with a freely available food supply.[citation needed]
Hernando de Soto is known to have introduced Eurasian domestic swine to Florida in 1539,[2] although Juan Ponce de León may have introduced the first pigs into mainland Florida in 1521.[3]
The practice of introducing domestic pigs into the New World continued throughout the exploration periods of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries.[1] It is thought that the Eurasian wild boar (Sus scrofa scrofa), which originally ranged from Great Britain to European Russia may have also been introduced.[4]
In South America, during the early twentieth century, free-ranging boars[clarification needed] were introduced in Uruguay for hunting purposes and eventually crossed the border into Brazil in the 1990s, quickly becoming an invasive species. Licensed private hunting of both feral boars and their hybrids with domestic pigs was authorized from August 2005 on in the Southern Brazilian state of Rio Grande do Sul,[5] although their presence as a pest had been already noticed by the press as early as 1994.[6] Releases and escapes from unlicensed farms (established because of increased demand for boar meat as an alternative to pork), however, continued to bolster feral populations and by mid-2008 licensed hunts had to be expanded to the states of Santa Catarina and São Paulo.[7]
Recently-established Brazilian boar populations are not to be confused with long established populations of feral domestic pigs (porcos monteiros), which have existed mainly in the Pantanal for more than a hundred years, along with native peccaries. The demographic dynamics of the interaction between feral pig populations and those of the two native species of peccaries (Collared Peccary and White-lipped Peccary) is obscure and is being studied presently. It has been proposed that the existence of feral pigs could somewhat ease jaguar predation on peccary populations, as jaguars would show a preference for hunting pigs, when these are available.[8]
21st century [edit]
As of 2008, the estimated population of four million feral hogs cause an estimated $800 million of property damage a year in the U.S.[9]
Appearances in popular culture [edit]
Following a long tradition of wild boar images in European heraldry, the razorback serves as an athletic image for the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville USA. The current live mascot's name is Tusk, a Russian boar. Fans of the team shout a chant derived from a domestic hog farmers' call.
Razorback is also the title of a 1984 Australian horror film directed by Russell Mulcahy, featuring a murderous and gigantic wild boar terrorizing the Australian outback. Other killer pig films include Pig Hunt (2008) by the late James Isaac and the Korean black comedy Chawz (2009).
An Australian razorback appears in the Disney animated film The Rescuers Down Under (1990).
The Razorback is the name of a Space Marine tank in Warhammer 40,000.
See also [edit]
References [edit]
- ^ a b History of Wild Swine in the United States
- ^ Susan L. Woodward; Joyce A. Quinn (30 September 2011). Encyclopedia of Invasive Species: From Africanized Honey Bees to Zebra Mussels. ABC-CLIO. pp. 277–. ISBN 978-0-313-38220-8. Retrieved 26 December 2011.
- ^ John J. Mayer; I. Lehr Brisbin, Jr. (1 March 2008). Wild Pigs in the United States: Their History, Comparative Morphology, and Current Status. University of Georgia Press. pp. 20–. ISBN 978-0-8203-3137-9. Retrieved 26 December 2011.
- ^ (Italian)Scheggi, Massimo (1999). La Bestia Nera: Caccia al Cinghiale fra Mito, Storia e Attualità. p. 201. ISBN 88-253-7904-8.
- ^ "INSTRUÇÃO NORMATIVA Nº 71, DE 04 DE AGOSTO DE 2005". SERVIÇO PÚBLICO FEDERAL MINISTÉRIO DO MEIO AMBIENTE INSTITUTO BRASILEIRO DO MEIO AMBIENTE E DOS RECURSOS NATURAIS RENOVÁVEIS. 2009-02-13.
- ^ "Javali: fronteiras rompidas" ("Boars break across the border") Globo Rural 9:99, January 1994, ISSN 0102-6178, pgs.32/35
- ^ Cecconi, Eduardo (2009-02-13). "A técnica da caça do javali: Reprodução desordenada do animal é combatida com o abate". Terra de Mauá.
- ^ Furtado, Fred (2009-02-13). "Invasor ou vizinho? Invasor ou vizinho? Estudo traz nova visão sobre interação entre porco-monteiro e seus ’primos’ do Pantanal". Ciencia Hoje.
- ^ Brick, Michael (2008-06-21). "Bacon a Hard Way: Hog-Tying 400 Pounds of Fury". The New York Times.
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