Pygmy Hog Conservation Programme

• Integrity Education, Delhi
• 23, Jun 2021

Why in news: Rare pygmy hogs released in Assam’s Manas National Park

• Pygmy Hog Conservation Programme is a collaborative project of Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust, IUCN/SSC Wild Pig Specialist Group,Forest Department, Govt. of Assam and the Ministry of Environment & Forest, Govt. of India.
• It is implemented in Assam by the Rare & Endangered Species Conservation Unit (RESCU) of EcoSystems-India.

​About Pygmy Hog

• The pygmy hog (Porcula salvania) is the smallest and the rarest wild suid in the world.
• The species is currently listed as ‘Critically Endangered’ under the IUCN Red List
• The species is also offered the highest legal protection under Schedule I of the Indian Wildlife (Protection) Act and under Appendix I of CITES.

About Manas National Park

• Manas National Park or Manas Wildlife Sanctuary is a national park, UNESCO Natural World Heritage site, a Project Tiger reserve, an elephant reserve and a biosphere reserve in Assam, India.
• the last population of the Pygmy Hog survive in the wilds of Manas and nowhere else in the world.
• Manas is the only landscape in the world where pristine Terai Grasslands are seen merging with the Bhabar grasslands interspersed with diverse habitats
• Manas boasts the largest population of the endangered Bengal Florican in the world