North Sulawesi Babirusa

Babyrousa celebensis

Easy (Promiscuous)

The **North Sulawesi Babirusa** (*Babyrousa celebensis*) is a mid-sized Asian ungulate featured in the Southeast Asia Animal Pack DLC for Planet Zoo.

## Zoopedia Description

### General

**Population In Wild:** 9,999

The North Sulawesi babirusa is a species of pig native to the Sulawesi island of Indonesia and several small surrounding islands. The North Sulawesi babirusa is mostly hairless with grey skin. Male babirusas have four large tusks that curl back towards their skull. The North Sulawesi babirusa has a head-body length of 85 to 110cm, a tail length of 29 to 32cm and a shoulder height of 58 to 66cm. Male babirusas weigh between 70 and 100kg and female babirusas weigh between 45 and 80kg

The babirusa is a vulnerable species due to overhunting for its meat as well as habitat loss. They are also often attacked and killed by domestic and feral dogs. Babirusas are a protected species in Indonesia but continue to be at risk in spite of this

### Social

Babirusa females tend to live in small groups with their offspring. Babirusa males are solitary

### Reproduction

Females live in groups that are often made up of sisters and their offspring under two years old. Mature males live alone but will come alongside female groups in the mating season. During the mating season when the females are in oestrues, males will track them from the scent of their urine and follow them once located. If two males locate the same female, they may engage in a dominance display in order to win the rights to mate. They will vocalise, charge at each other and, if neither concedes, fight by standing on their hind legs and "box" with their front legs. Usually the larger male with the longer teeth will win

After a pregnancy of 150-164 days, the female will give birth to 1-2 piglets. Piglets can eat solid food from 3-10 days after birth and will be full weaned by 6-8 months old, or earlier if their mother falls pregnant again. Male young leave their mother´s group at 1 year old and will become solitary. Females may remain with their mother´s group or leave to start their own natal group.

## Animal Care

 FEEDING STATIONS
 FOOD ENRICHMENT
Small Barrel Feeder · Forage Box Enrichment · Fruit Spike Tree
Cardboard Box · Gift Box · Sprinkler · Wind Chimes · Herb scent marker · Rubbing Pillar · Mud Bath · Scots Pine/Tamarind Scratching Tree

## Trivia

### Zoopedia Fun Facts

* "Babirusa" means "pig deer" in Malay.
* Babirusas have a two chambered stomach, more like that of a sheep than of other pigs.
* The male babirusas tusks continue to grow throughout his life and can even grow into the skull.
* Babirusas are missing a bone in the snout that other pigs have, so they do not engage in ‘rooting’ behaviour typical of pigs.
* Babirusas are excellent swimmer; it is thought that they are found across various Indonesian islands because they swam to them.

### Other Trivia

* In the trailer the Babirusa was referred to as the "North Sulawesi Babirusa", but when the Southeast Asia Animal Pack came out they were just called Babirusa. This was later fixed in the 1.7 Update.
	+ Similarly, the scientific name was that of the Buru Babirusa (*Babyrousa babyrussa*). This was also fixed in 1.7.