'World's ugliest pig' caught on camera

Scientists have captured the first footage in the wild of one of the world's rarest - and ugliest - pigs.

The Javan warty pig is under such threat from hunting and habitat loss that conservationists surveying its habitat believed it might already have been driven to extinction.

Camera traps have now revealed that small populations survive in Java's increasingly fragmented forests.

The team says its aim now is to protect the rare animals' habitat.

The survey was led by Dr Johanna Rode-Margono from Chester Zoo, who said she and her colleagues were "thrilled" to see that the pigs were still there.

The pigs are losing habitat to deforestation for agricultural and urban development, but are also coming into direct conflict with humans. The animals are considered pests and often hunted because they raid crops.

Out of seven areas the team surveyed - using hidden, motion-activated cameras - only three had Javan warty pigs, reports BBC.