Large and very distinctive rodent. Un­mistakable. Thickset with coarse blackish brown fur with thick bristles on neck, shoulders, and legs, thinner ones on head. Along center of head along neck to back, a mane of long, brownish white hairs, paler toward tip, that can be erected to form a crest. From middle of back, along hind flanks and upper side of tail, there is a crest of black-and-white quills, reaching up to 40cm in length. Quills at end of tail white, short, and hollow. Head large and blunt, with small eyes and ears. Head yellow-gray in color. Legs stout with large pads and powerful claws. Voice confined to grunts, but can also rattle the tail quills.

Hystrix cristata is found in Italy, Sicily, and along the Mediterranean coast of Africa to northern Zaire and Tanzania (Nowak 1991; Amori and Angelici 1992). Some scientists say H. cristata was introduced into Italy by the Romans as a game animal, however fossil records indicate their presence back to the Upper Pleistocene (Amori and Angelici 1992). They are believed to have recently gone extinct in the Balkans (Amori and Angelici 1992).

Biogeographic Regions: palearctic (Native )

1 record.

Localized (Salloum).

Narrow (Italy, Sicily, North Africa to Zaire & Tanzania).

The average head and body length of the crested porcupine is 600-930 mm, with a tail length of 80-170 mm (Nowak 1991). The head, neck, shoulders, limbs and underside of body are covered with coarse, dark brown or black bristles (Nowak 1991). The animal is characterized by quills along the head, nape, and back that can be raised into a crest, in addition to sturdier quills about 350 mm long along the sides and back half of body generally used for defensive purposes (Nowak 1991). These stronger quills are generally marked with alternating light and dark bands.

Hystrix is distinct among Old World porcupines due to its shorter tail and the presence of rattle quills at the end of the tail (Nowak 1991). These quills broaden at the terminal end and this section is hollow and thin walled, so a hisslike rattle is produced by their vibration (Nowak 1991).

The forefoot of Hystrix has four well-developed, clawed digits (the thumb is regressed), and the hind foot has five (Nowak 1991; Grzimek 1990). The soles of paws are naked and have pads (Grzimek 1990), and their gait is plantigrade (Nowak 1991). Eyes and external ears are very small, with long vibrissae on the head (Nowak 1991; Grzimek 1990).

The animal's skull morphology is characteristic in several ways: (1) the infraorbital foramen is greatly enlarged so that portions of the masseter extend through it and arise from the frontal side surface of the snout (hystricomorphous condition); (2) the angular process is inflected on the lower jaw; (3) the nasal cavity is enlarged; (4) prominent pockets-like inflations are prominent in the skull, upper jaw and lacrimal and turbinate bones (reasons for such pockets are unknown, however they do create enlarged areas of attachment for chewing muscles and could possibly allow animals to smell undergrond bulbs during dry periods or wet dry inhaled air); (4) shin and calf bones are fused; (5) the collar bone is greatly reduced; and (6) five teeth in each jaw -- one incisor, one premolar and three molars (Grzimek 1990).

Range mass: 10 to 30 kg.

Average mass: 0.02 kg.

Length 60-93 cm, tail 8-17 cm, weight 10-20 kg.

• Terrestrial

Hystrix are highly adaptable, found in forests, rocky areas, mountains, croplands, and sandhill deserts (Nowak 1991; Grzimek 1990). They shelter in caves, rock crevices, aardvark holes, or burrows they dig themselves (Grzimek 1990). Burrows are often extensive and used for many years (Nowak 1991).

Terrestrial Biomes: savanna or grassland ; forest ; mountains

The highly adaptable North African crested porcupine inhabits a wide range of habitats, including forests, Mediterranean shrubland, rocky areas and croplands. During the day it shelters in dens, which may be in caves, rock crevices or unused aardvark (Orycteropus afer) holes, or the North African crested porcupine may dig its own burrow.

Hystrix cristata is an herbivore that eats bark, roots, tubers, rhizomes, bulbs, fallen fruits and cultivated crops (Nowak 1991; Bruno and Riccardi 1995; Grzimek 1990). They occasionally consume insects, small vertebrates and carrion (Nowak 1991; Grzimek 1990). In addition, they commonly gnaw on bones for calcium and to sharpen incisors (Nowak 1991; Grzimek 1990). Hystrix cristata can travel significant distances in search of food (Nowak 1991; Pigozzi and Patterson 1990).

Crested porcupines have high crowned teeth with plane chewing surfaces for grinding plant cells that are then digested in the stomach (Grzimek 1990). Undigested fibers are retained in the enlarged appendix and anterior large intestine and broken up by microorganisms (Grzimek 1990).

Plant Foods: roots and tubers

Primary Diet: herbivore (Lignivore, Eats sap or other plant foods)

The North African crested porcupine has a primarily herbivorous diet, comprising bark, roots, tubers, rhizomes, bulbs, fallen fruit and cultivated crops, although it will occasionally supplement this diet with insects, small vertebrates and carrion. It may gnaw on the bones when feeding on carrion, which not only allows the porcupine to sharpen its incisors, but also provides a source of essential calcium.

The North African crested porcupine is nocturnal and all foraging activity takes place during the night, before it returns to a den where it resides during the day. It forages alone and will travel long distances in search of food – up to 15 kilometers each night.

Despite being a solitary forager, the North African crested porcupine lives in small family groups consisting of an adult pair with their young. They live together sharing an elaborate burrow system, which they may remain in during winter, although they do not undergo true hibernation.

Mating takes place at night, which, due to the North African crested porcupine’s spiny body, is a thorny task, and involves the male adopting a very particular mating position. Females usually have only one litter per year, containing one or two, occasionally three, offspring. The young are born in the wet season, after a gestation period of 112 days, in a separate grass-lined birth chamber within the burrow system. North African crested porcupine young are well-developed at birth, with open eyes and developed incisors, although the spines on the back are soft. The young porcupines, known as ‘porcupettes’, have five white stripes on their sides that fade after four weeks-of-age.

Range lifespan

Status: captivity: 28 (high) years.

Much of our knowledge of breeding behavior in H. cristata comes from captive individuals. Nowak (1991) reported that breeding occurs throughout the year at the London Zoo, from July to December in Central Africa, and from March to December in Indian zoos. He also indicated that captive females in South Africa produced litters throughout the year, mainly from August to March with a peak in January. Usually, females have only one litter per year (Nowak 1991). After a 35 day estrous cycle and 112 day gestation period, one to two well developed offspring are born in a grasslined chamber within the burrow system (Nowak 1991; Grzimek 1990). At birth or shortly afterward, the young's eyes are open and incisors are completely broken through (Grzimek 1990). The body is covered with short hair, and back spines are still soft with individual sensing bristles projecting far beyond the spines (Grzimek 1990). Newborn weigh only 3% of the mother's body weight. Yet they leave the den for first time after only one week, at which time the spines begin to harden (Grzimek 1990). The young begin to feed on solid food between two and three weeks, and the five white stripes found on their side start to disappear at four weeks (Grzimek 1990). Hystrix cristata individuals usually reach adult weight at one to two years and are usually sexually mature just before then (Grzimek 1990).

Hystrix cristata females do not show aggression to familiar males, but are aggressive to unknowns (Grzimek 1990). Given their spiny anatomy, mating would be impossible without such an adaptation. To mate, the female raises her tail and the male stands on his hind legs, supporting himself with his forefeet on the female's back (Grzimek 1990). According to Felicioli et al. (1997), no male weight is transferred to the female, no penile lock occurs, and there are multiple intromissions and multiple thrustings. Mating occurs only at night, both in and out of the burrow (Felicioli et al. 1997). The females have two to three pair of lateral thoracic mammae (Nowak 1991) and males have no scrotum and the penis points backward in the resting position (Grzimek 1990).

Average birth mass: 1000 g.

Average gestation period: 66 days.

Average number of offspring: 2.3.

Hystrix cristata is listed as endangered (Amori and Angelici 1992) and has, at least in Italy, been protected since 1974 (Bruno and Riccardi 1995). They are poached for food and killed because they are considered an agricultural pest (Nowak 1991; Amori and Angelici 1992). In addition to humans, enemies include lions, leopards, large birds of prey, and hyenas (Grzimek 1990).

IUCN Red List of Threatened Species: least concern

Accidental ?

Not assessed (not a resident).

Very rare.

Porcupines are considered agricultural pests because they gnaw the bark of plantation rubber trees and eat corn, pumpkin, sweet potatoes, cassava, and young cotton plants (Nowak 1991).

Porcupine quills are often used as ornaments and talismans (Nowak 1991). The meat of these animals is considered a delicacy, and thus they are illegally hunted (Amori and Angelici 1992).

Positive Impacts: food