Wild Boar Hunting In Portugal

Driven wild boar hunting in Portugal is an exciting and challenging experience. This a fine game animal is very alert, wary and fast running. As with any wild boar it can also be quite dangerous in a close encounter.

Eurasian Wild Boar Trophy Minimums

The wild boar that occur in Portugal actually belong to the Eurasian subspecies Sus scrofa castilianus but they are listed as Eurasian wild boar in the RW & SCI record books.

Wild Boar Habitat And Requirements

• Wild boar prefer a wooded habitat with lots of undergrowth and a permanent water supply for drinking and wallowing. They are not averse to living near agricultural areas as long as there is adequate cover nearby.

Wild Boar Social Structure

• Wild boar are gregarious, living in family groups known as sounders, though old boars may be solitary. If wild boar are relatively undisturbed in their habitat, they are active during the day, sleeping through the midday heat and at night. If wild boar are disturbed by human activity, they can become completely nocturnal.

Wild Boar Gestation Period

• Approximately 115 days resulting in a typical litter size of 4 to 6 piglets.
• The breeding season begins with mating activity peaking in mid-autumn.

Wild Boar Gender Identification

• The male boar is bigger than the female in stature and tusk length. Portuguese wild boar are generally smaller than those found in central European, weighing an average of 80kg, rarely attaining 120kg. The average length from head to tail is 120-170cm and average height at the withers is 48-69cm.
• The male wild boar has stocky body with relatively thin legs, a short neck, and a long snout. It has dense, bristly hair which is brownish-grey in colour and unlike other wild boar, Portuguese ones have woolly hairs among the bristles. Occasionally they carry cheek whiskers and a neck mane. Unlike the warthog, there are no facial warts. The canine teeth form the tusks. The upper tusks grow outward and backward and the lower ones grow upward and backward, forming a circle. Tusks will wear against each other and develop very sharp edges.

Wild Boar Hunting Methods

• In Portugal, local hunters often congregate in various-sized groups called 'montaria' and hold driven hunting days with beaters and dogs.
• Wild boar hunting in Portugal may also be done from a blind. It is allowed for 10 nights per each lunar month - 8 nights before full moon, the night of the full moon and the following night only.
• The blind shooting area can be baited with food and can be occupied before dusk until early morning.
• Hunting wild boar from a blind will generally not be done in the stalking season due to the hours involved. It can be arranged from March to the end of August.

A Good Wild Boar Trophy

• The desired trophy is a mature boar with a large set of tusks. More than 20cm tusks is a great Portuguese wild boar trophy.

Wild Boar Shot Placement

• Wild boar shot placement is similar to that of the African warthog. Go to Warthog Shot Placement.

Wild Boar Trophies In Portugal

Wild Boar Hunting Recommended Reading

The Complete Book Of Wild Boar Hunting: Tips And Tactics That Will Work Anywhere by Todd Triplett. Covers hunting wild boar across North America and around the world. He hunts javelina in the southwest US and the warthog in Africa. Includes preparing wild boar for the table and the taxidermist, plus a host of tips for a successful hunt.

Wild Boar Hunting Recommended Viewing

Wild Boar Fever features hunting for Eurasian wild boars. A group of six hunters stay in a traditional hunting lodge in Hungary and covers several boar-hunting days in a row, and on day one alone twenty-nine boars are culled.

More On Hunting In Portugal

• Book A Red Deer Hunt In Portugal
• Red Deer & Fallow Deer Hunting In Portugal
• Wing-Shooting In Portugal
• Wild Boar Hunting In Portugal

1. Home
>
2. Hunting Portugal
>
3. Wild Boar Hunting In Portugal

Back to Top

Page Updated: May 2020