Chapter 7: Moluccan babirusa Babyrousa babyrussa (Linnaeus, 1758)73
25th to the 32nd week. These long periods of weaning possibly indi-
cate the considerable investment of babirusa parents into their few
offspring (Maclaughin et al. 2000).
Behaviour
There is a lack of information on Moluccan babirusa behaviour
both in the wild and in captivity. Some studies had been con-
ducted to investigate the biological aspect of other babirusa. The
results suggested that research must be interpreted with caution
because B. babyrussa live in a different environment compared
to the other babirusa species. Therefore, site-specific natural
history observations are needed.
The social system in B. babyrussa is still unknown. Davidson
et al. (1995) spotted a male babirusa alone in Sula, but this is
not sufficient to imply that the male of this species is solitary.
Other male babirusa in mainland Sulawesi are often in matriar-
chal groups, comprising one or a few adult females and juveniles
(Clayton & Macdonald 1999). One or more female babirusa
may be found together with offspring (Patry et al. 1995). In
other babirusa species, the group size varies from 2 to 13
individuals (Patry et al. 1995; Clayton & Macdonald 1999;
Akbar et al. 2007).
In the Togean Islands, wallowing is a common babirusa
behaviour (Akbar et al. 2007). Ploughing is also observed by
male babirusa both in the zoo and in the wild for B. celebensis
(Macdonald 1993; Patry et al. 1995; Leus et al. 1996). Babirusa
put their snout into the mud, then kneel and slide forward on to
their chests. The male produces saliva in the form of foam at the
sides of the mouth prior to ploughing. This is thought to func-
tion in scent marking of male babirusa to delineate its territory
(Leus et al. 1996).
Adult male babirusa compete for food and females (Akbar
et al. 2007). To intimidate the other individual, a male glances
from a certain distance, then rears up and engages in what has
been called boxing (Macdonald & Leus 1995; Patry et al. 1995).
Fighting involves chasing, bumping the frontal head, biting, and
standing on two legs. Fighting individuals may lead and paddle
against the chest and shoulder of the opponent with snouts held
high (Macdonald & Leus 1995; Akbar et al. 2007).
Parasites and Diseases
No study has ever been conducted to examine the parasites and
diseases suffered by Moluccan babirusa. Artiodactylous spe-
cies such as Babirusa spp. are likely to have intestinal infections
caused by helminth parasites (Munro et al. 1990).
Status in the Wild
Moluccan babirusa is listed as Vulnerable by the International
Union for Conservation of Nature (Macdonald et al. 2008).
Moluccan babirusa previously had high abundance in Buru
Island, including in the Kajeli Bay (Meijaard et al. 2016).
Nonetheless, the current population status of B. babyrussa is
unknown, but the trend seems to be decreasing due to logging
and hunting by some of the local villagers in several parts of the
islands (Oliver 1995; Monk et al. 1997; Macdonald et al. 2008).
Even as far back as 1991, some of the local people believed that
the Moluccan babirusa population had declined, especially in
the lowland areas (Davidson et al. 1995).
One of the threats for Moluccan babirusa is hunting, even
though the species is not considered as pests. This species is rela-
tively easy to hunt because of the thin skin. The skulls are kept as
decoration due to its unique teeth feature (Meijaard et al. 2016).
Other babirusa, such as Sulawesi babirusa, are severely threat-
ened by intense hunting as well, but more for market-oriented
bush meat (Milner-Gulland & Clayton 2002; Lee et al. 2005).
However, some skulls of babirusa were also found in North
Sulawesi and Bali as souvenirs (Melisch 1995; Nijman & Nekaris
2014). The lack of law enforcement and awareness of wildlife
laws worsens the trade. In comparison, Togean babirusa are
hunted as pests because of their impact on local people’s gardens
and plantations.
Fortunately, the trade in babirusa has slowed down signifi-
cantly in the last decade (Lee et al. 2005), suggesting that trad-
ers are selectively avoiding dealing in protected species due to
tighter law enforcement (Milner-Gulland & Clayton 2002; Lee
et al. 2005). However, it might also reflect the declining number
of babirusa in the wild. It is almost the same case with flying fox
where, when the supply declined from North Sulawesi, the hunt-
ing area was expanded to other provinces (Sheherazade & Tsang
2015). Therefore, the Moluccan babirusa is possibly threatened
by expansion of the hunting area to fulfil the demand from the
North Sulawesi market.
The Sulawesi-endemic babirusa (Babyrousa celebensis)
appears to be particularly vulnerable to hunting pressure
because it lacks both the adaptability and fast reproduction of
Sus species (Corlett 2007). The Moluccan babirusa with even
more restricted distribution is more prone to extirpation, thus
needs to be prioritized for conservation. Pigs disperse some
small seeds, but they can also act as mobile seed predators
(Curran & Webb 2000).
Another threat is forest clearance with shifting cultiva-
tion that may be the cause of the reduction in babirusa habi-
tat (Akbar et al. 2007). The habitat of the Moluccan babirusa is
similarly threatened as Sula and Buru Islands have experienced
deforestation (Monk et al. 1997).Conservation Measures
Babirusa has been decreed a protected species under Indonesian
Government Regulation Number 7 Year 1999. Macdonald (in
Monk et al. 1997) named two protection areas, namely Taliabu
strict nature reserve (c.9743 ha, gazetted in 1995) and on Buru,
Masbait nature reserve (c.6250 ha, gazetted in 1985). Note that
even if they harbour babirusa populations, none of these insular
nature reserves are connected with other forests so as to main-
tain corridors to allow better metapopulation dynamics and
management.
It would help if habitat conservation ensured the abundance
of fruits, and corridors are in place. Stemming babirusa hunting
and trade requires strict law enforcement which includes fines
and regular patrols at sites where babirusa are currently dis-
tributed (Melisch 1995; Clayton et al. 1999; Milner-Gulland &
Clayton 2002; Corlett 2007). Increasing levels of awareness
through public education is necessary, although this will take a.00912:33:27