As the name suggests, red river hogs are covered in reddish-brown to orange fur. Their legs and face are black, with white markings down the spine and along the cheeks and jaw. Unlike other African pigs, the red river hog has hair over its entire body with no visible bare skin. Besides their usual coat, they also have distinguishing tufts of hair on the tips of their ears and tail. Males (boars) have long white whiskers all over their face more so than the females (sows).

Red river hogs weigh between 100-250 pounds with a shoulder height of about 2 feet and length of up to 5 feet. Even with their heavy weight, these are still one of the smaller African pigs. Like with other wild pigs, the red river hog’s tusks come from its canine teeth. Both males and females have tusks but they’re more prominent in males.

In addition to tusks, males will develop bony facial growths to protect against head-to-head combat with other boars.

The red river hog is part of the pig family and can be found across western and central Africa. True to their name, these pigs are often found wallowing through rivers and streams. Red river hogs are most likely found near swamps or rainforests; otherwise, anywhere with plenty of brush and vegetation to forage and hide in is an ideal habitat.

Red river hogs are omnivorous, consuming mainly roots and tubers but will also eat fruit, eggs, insects, lizards, and more. They use their large snout, tusks, and fore-feet to snuffle through the soil in search of food. These pigs graze in groups and will grunt or squeal to alarm others of predators in the area.

Mating season for the red river hogs is constructed so the young will be born at the end of the dry season into the rainy season. All females in the group will mate with their singular male. Once pregnant, the sows carry the babies for four months before giving birth to three to six piglets.

Piglets are born weighing a little under two pounds with yellowish stripes and spots on their dark brown bodies. They are weaned after about four months and will grow the reddish adult coat after about six months.

Leopards are the main predator against red river hogs.

Red river hogs tend to live in small groups consisting of one alpha male and five to ten adult females with their offspring. There have been recorded sightings of larger groups of over 30 members, but it is normally in areas with generous resources.