Morphological characterizations of two populations of feral swine

Abstract

1977: Morphological characterizations of two populations of feral swine. Acta theriol, 22, 4: 75-85 [With 2 Tables & 1 Fig.]. Morphology of feral swine was compared between an island population (OIP) and a mainland population (SRP) in the southeastern United States. The two populations differed in the amount of time that they had existed in the feral state; OIP was essentially free from the influences of domestication for several hundred years, while SRP was feral approximately 20 years. SRP pigs were significantly heavier and had greater total body lengths than OIP pigs, but no significant differences in total body lengths or weights were noted between sexes within either population. A discriminant function analysis was used to test for significant differences between populations with respect to various body measurements, which were normalized for differences in total body length. Only shoulder height contributed a meaningful proportion of the total variation of the discriminant function for differences between populations. The discriminant function for differences due to sex within populations was not significant. Flank and spinal hair lengths were significantly greater in the OIP pigs, but exhibited no sexual dimorphism within either population. The frequency distribution of various color phenotypes was significantly different between populations, with differences largely attributable to a marked reduction in the frequency of the rarer phenotypes (particularly white) in the OIP. [Savannah River Ecol. Lab., Drawer E. Aiken, South Carolina 29801, USA].