A team of Crested Indian Wild Boars (Sus scrofa cristatus)

 

Always wanted a photograph of a group of wild boars crossing a forest track…. and never got one till this day in Tadoba. This was perfect… the light … the time… and the number of them and the various sizes. 
The Indian wild boars (Sus scrofa) doesn’t draw much attention from the visitors to the forests but … they look gorgeous with their firm dorsal crest. It may be interesting to note that until the Turko-Afghan invasions of North India in the 12th century, the wild boar was greatly admired due its association with Varaha. A number of temples dedicated to Varaha still exist today across India. The boar was also the royal symbol of dynasties of the Guptas in the North and the Cholas and Vijayanagar in the South.
These are fierce and powerful animals and present a formidable challenge even to predators like the tiger and leopard. There has been many incidents of boars fatally wounding tigers. They are prolific breeders and breed throughout the year. Females start breeding at a very early age. Males generally disassociate themselves after the breeding and live alone or with other males of similar size. After a gestation period of 4 months, a litter of 4-8 piglets is born.
The group communicates with each other with low squeals and grunts, especially around the water's edge, where boars of all ages and sizes love to wallow.