Marc van Roosmalen, a Dutch scientist claims to have found a new species of wild pig in the Amazon forest. Roosmalen has published his findings in the October 29 issue of the German journal Bonner Zoologische Beitrage. The pig is four feet long and weighs 90 pounds. The DNA analysis of the animal showed that the animal diverged from the most closely related species, Pecari tajacau or collared peccary about 1 million to 1.2 million years ago.
However, scientists say that more research is necessary to confirm that the species is new. Roosmalen is campaigning for conservation of wild life in the Amazon. He said that the new peccary, which he dubbed Pecari maximus, inhabits a logged frontier of the Amazon around Nova Aripuana where the number of sawmills has grown from two in 2002 to fourteen in the current year.
The wild pig species usually travels in small groups comprising of two adults and one or two off springs. While other species move in large herds, these pigs that travel in small groups are vulnerable to hunters.
Van Roosmalen’s success in discovering new species in the Amazon has earned him international acclaim.
Source:AP
Image:scz
