Classroom lesson · Wildlife · 🇸🇳 Senegal

Warthog - the kneeling grazer

A tough little pig that kneels to eat its dinner

A warthog walking through dry savannah grass with its tail up

Photo · Wikimedia Commons

What is it?

The warthog is a wild pig that lives in the grasslands and savannahs of Senegal and across most of Africa. It has a big square head, short tusks curling up from each side of its mouth, and bumpy 'warts' on its face that give it its name. Warthogs are tougher than they look.

Tell me more

Warthogs eat grass and roots. Because their legs are short and their head is big, they often kneel down on their front legs while grazing. Imagine a horse eating its dinner on its knees - that's a warthog. Their knees have hard, padded skin to protect them.

When they sense danger, warthogs sprint - and they are surprisingly fast, hitting around 50 km/h. While they run, they hold their thin tail straight up in the air, like a little flag. Some scientists think this helps the babies (called piglets) follow their mum through tall grass.

Warthogs live in old burrows that other animals (like aardvarks) have dug. They reverse into the burrow tail-first, so they can face out with their tusks ready if anything tries to follow them inside. Their wide head fits the burrow opening like a plug.

Mum warthogs are fierce. A piglet has a much safer life than you'd think, because if anything gets close, mum will charge with her tusks lowered. Piglets stay with their mum for about a year before going off to find their own grasslands.

In the classroom

Walk your class through this in 15 minutes.

Talk together

Discussion prompts

  1. 01Why might it help a baby animal to follow its mum's tail through tall grass?
  2. 02Warthogs reverse into their burrows. What other animals can you think of that have clever ways of staying safe?
  3. 03What's something that looks a bit funny but is actually really good at its job?
Try this

Classroom activity

Stretch out on the floor on your front. Now try to eat a snack while kneeling on your hands (no leaning down!). How does it feel? Discuss: what would your body need to make that comfortable all day, like a warthog's?