The boar or wild boar (Sus scrofa) is an omnivorous, gregarious mammal of the biological family Suidae. It is native across much of Central Europe, the Mediterranean Region (including North Africa's Atlas Mountains) and much of Asia as far south as Indonesia, and has been introduced elsewhere. It is the wild ancestor of the domestic pig.

Although common in France, the wild boar became extinct in Great Britain and Ireland by the 17th century, but wild breeding populations have recently returned in some areas, particularly the Weald, following escapes from boar farms.

Name

The term boar is used to denote an adult male of certain species – including, confusingly, domestic pigs. However, for wild boar, it applies to the whole species, including, for instance, "sow wild boar" or "wild boar piglet"

Physical characteristics

Adult boars average 100-150 cm in length and have a shoulder height of 90 cm. As a whole, their average weight is 60-70 kilograms (132-154 pounds), though boars show a great deal of weight variation within their geographical ranges. Boars shot in Tuscany have been recorded to weigh 150 kg (331 lbs). A French specimen shot in Negremont forest in Ardenne in 1999 weighed 227 kg (550 lbs). Carpathian boars have been recorded to reach weights of 200 kg (441 lbs), while Romanian and Russian boars can reach weights of 300 kg (661 lbs). Boars even approaching this size today are considered exceptional.Fact: date=July 2008

The continuously growing tusks (the canine teeth) serve as weapons and burrowing tools. The lower tusks of an adult male measure about (from which seldom more than protrude out of the mouth), in exceptional cases even . The upper tusks are bent upwards in males, and are regularly ground against each other to produce sharp edges. In females they are smaller, and the upper tusks are only slightly bent upwards in older individuals.

Wild boar piglets are coloured differently from adults, being a soft brown with longitudinal darker stripes. The stripes fade by the time the piglet is about half-grown, when the animal takes on the adult's grizzled grey or brown colour.

Behavior

The animals are usually nocturnal, foraging from dusk until dawn but with resting periods during both night and day.^{(p. 4-5, 8-9)} They eat almost anything they come across, including grass, nuts, berries, carrion, roots, tubers, refuse, insects, small reptiles--even young deer and lambs.^{(p. 9-10)}