Plate 31, Collared Peccary 21.5" x 27"

John W. Audubon says this specimen bears a striking resemblance to the domestic hog, can be easily domesticated but has a foul odor and strong taste. Aubudon received his information from an associate, William P. Smith, who was sent to Texas in 1841 to acquire living specimens for the zoological gardens of the Earl of Derby at Knowsley, near Liverpool in England. Smith relates a story of the early colonists in the Brazos River bottomlands, prior to 1833 when that area was flooded. Says Smith,"these Mexican hogs……struck terror into the hearts of settlers….oftentimes pursuing the planter and forcing him to ascend a tree, where he would sometimes be obliged to wait…..while the hogs would….snap their teeth, run about and then lie down at the root of the tree in wait for their enemy to come down." The two Smith captured for return to England accidentally died trying to free themselves. The specimens were instead sent to Audubon and Bachman. Smith was unable to find other peccaries.