Banyuwangi Alas Purwo National Park Home to Javan Warty Pig
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19 January 2021 20:11 WIB
TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Located in Banyuwangi, East Java, Alas Purwo National Park is home to an endangered species called Javan pig (Sus verrucosus), or locally known as ‘babi kutil’ or warty pig. Some people even call it an ugly beast.
As quoted from the official website of the national park, it has facial warts and elongated manes on the neck to the tailbone. For people in general, the black pig looks like a wild boar.
It is endemic to Java. The population keeps falling by more than 50 percent over the past 18 years. Thus, the International Union for Conservation of Nature listed the warty pig as a threatened species.
The habitat of the species is known to exist in Madiun, Probolinggo, Bojonegoro, Mojokerto, Gresik, Tuban, Nusa Barung Island, and Alas Purwo National Park. However, its habitat in the national park has not been truly discovered as it is just known via photos from hidden cameras installed in Rowobendo and Jatipapak areas.
The Javan warty pig is classified as omnivores as it eats grains, roots, tubers, and leaves. It often appears in teak stands, forest plantation areas, secondary forests, around the coast, and around people’s cultivated lands that border with forest areas.
RINI KUSTIANI | TAMAN NASIONAL ALAS PURWO