The PECCARY,
At firſt view, bears a general reſemblance to our common hog, but on examination is evidently of a diſtinct ſpecies; neither will they breed together. The head of the Peccary is large; the ſnout long, and terminates like the hog’s; the neck is thick and ſhort; the body bulky, and marked down the neck with a belt of a whitiſh colour; the legs are ſhort; the general colour is black; each hair or briſtle is marked with alternate bands of black and white, like the porcupine’s quills; the coating is a coarſe kind of briſtles, which are long over the whole body, and the length of four or five inches along the back; has no tail; the ſize is rather ſmaller than the common hog; the appearance equally clumſy with all of this tribe.
The Peccary is further diſtinguiſhable from every other quadruped, by an orifice in the back, near the rump, which by ſome has been miſtaken for the navel; from this opening diſcharges an ichorous liquor of a diſagreeable ſmell. It is neceſſary, immediately on killing the animal, to extract this orifice or gut, elſe, in the courſe of a quarter of an hour, it will taint the whole carcaſe.
The Peccary is a native of the hotteſt parts of South America, where they are very numerous, and go in herds of two or three hundred; prefer the mountains to the plains, and the woods to the open parts, as the food they moſt delight in abounds there in the greateſt plenty; they eat alſo toads, lizards and ſerpents; the latter they ſkin with great adroitneſs, holding them with the fore feet.
The Peccary, though not armed with ſuch offenſive weapons as the wild boar or hog, will fight ſtoutly with the beaſts of prey. The Jaguar, or American Leopard, is its mortal enemy; often the body of that animal is found with ſeveral of theſe hogs, ſlain in combat. They render mutual aſſiſtance when attacked, and endeavour to ſurround the enemy. The Peccary may be rendered tame and domeſtic; is ſatisfied with the ſame food as the hog, but is not ſo much inclined to be fat; nor will it, like them, wallow in mire. The fleſh is eſteemed very good food.
