Phenotype of Eurasian wild boar (Sus scrofa L.) as alien species in neotropical hotspots

Abstract

Feral pigs are the most common wild form of Sus scrofa out of the species’ native range. Nevertheless, there is a recent invasion of the Eurasian wild boar form in South America not yet described. This work aimed to describe the phenotype of S. scrofa ’s wild populations in the neotropics. Adult males were collected in Araucaria Forest (southern Brazil) and their skulls were measured and compared with samples from Eurasian wild boar (Germany and Russia) and feral pigs from Pantanal (central western of Brazil). The frequency of piglets was recorded in the most important forest fragments and protected areas of Araucaria Forest. The skull length varied among populations, feral pigs being significant smaller, with no differences among the other ones. Almost all observed piglets (95%) had typical coats, i.e. brown with light brown strips. The S. scrofa ’s population in the Araucaria Forest belonged to the Eurasian wild boar phenotype and it can illustrate an unexpected new cycle of invasion of S. scrofa in South America. This situation can be an additional threat to native wild pigs (the peccaries) and it challenges the conservation strategies in this megadiverse continent.