Fifteen Endangered Pygmy Hogs Returned to the Wild in Major Assam Conservation Milestone

Fifteen of the world's rarest and smallest pigs have been released into the wild in India's Assam state as part of a long-running conservation effort led by Jersey's Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust.

The animals were reintroduced into the Kuribeel grasslands of Manas National Park through the Pygmy Hog Conservation Programme, which aims to restore the species to its natural habitat after decades of decline.

The programme began in 1996 when six pygmy hogs were taken from the wild to establish a captive breeding population, helping to prevent the species from disappearing altogether.

Rebecca Brewer, chief executive of Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust, said the organisation was proud to have helped bring the species back from the brink.

"This programme has saved the pygmy hog from extinction and enabled wild populations to return and flourish once more in their historic range," she said.

Once feared extinct, the pygmy hog was rediscovered in 1971 after a small group was found sheltering from a grassland fire in a nearby tea plantation.

Since the breeding programme was established, 194 pygmy hogs have been successfully bred and released into the wild.

Alongside the breeding work, conservationists have spent the past eight years restoring the Kuribeel grasslands, where no evidence of a wild pygmy hog population had been recorded for around a decade.

The programme plans to release a further 80 animals over the next five years, with the long-term goal of establishing a self-sustaining wild population of 300 pygmy hogs by 2040.

Programme director Dr Parag Jyoti Deka said post-release monitoring would continue to play a key role in the project's success. Recent releases have been monitored using camera traps, field surveys and radio telemetry to track the animals' movements, survival and use of habitat after reintroduction.

"Each new release helps us improve our understanding of the species and strengthens our efforts to secure its future," he said.

Dr Vinay Gupta, Assam's principal chief conservator of forests and chief wildlife warden, described the latest release as a significant conservation success.

He said reintroducing pygmy hogs not only helps protect one of the world's most endangered mammals but also supports the restoration of Assam's fragile grassland ecosystems.