Warthogs are found in open and semiopen habitats, even in quite arid regions, in sub-Saharan Africa. Although covered in bristly hairs, their bodies and heads appear largely naked from a distance, with only the crest along the back, and the tufts on their cheeks and tails being obviously haired. The English name refers to their facial wattles, which are particularly distinct in males. They also have very distinct tusks, which reach a length of10.0 to 25.0 in in the males, but are always smaller in the females.
Desert warthogs live in social groups called “sounders” consisting mostly of females and their offspring while males tend to live in solitude or form bachelor groups. A sounder occupies a home range of about 3.9 sq mi which is usually centered on a water hole. The warthogs dig a number of burrows, or take over holes excavated by other animals, and move from one to another. Where the ranges of two different groups overlap, each may use the same burrow on different occasions. The groups do not interact to any great extent.
The warthog, Pumbaa was is a favorite character in Lion King. The name Pumbaa does not mean “warthog” in Swahili, pumbaa (v.) means “to be foolish, silly, weakminded, careless, negligent”. A fitting name for the warthogs who are know to forget what they are doing very quickly. This habit makes them a favorite snack for predators as they will only run for a small ways before forgetting why they were running and stop to graze.
