@DelacoursLangur - Babirusa lack the rostral bone in their snout that most other pigs have, so they actually cannot dig up solid dirt and grass in the way other Suids can. As such, they are much easier on vegetation in their exhibits. The babirusa won’t really be any more destructive than the family of otters will be.
San Antonio zoo had almost no grassy exhibits except for the Babirusa exhibit that had a perfect green lawn. It was a stunning contrast to what the warthog exhibit looked like.
@nczoofan We will have to wait and see I suppose. Every babirusa exhibit I have ever seen of this size is pretty bare after a while... Not from rooting, but just as a hoofed animal of this size.
@DelacoursLangur - The babirusa will likely wear paths through the grass, yes, but so will the family of otters. Pig hooves, especially tropical pig hooves, are softer than that of most other more derived ungulates. Combined with the fact that with the anatomy of pig feet, a lot of what makes contact with the ground is a fleshy pad, the feet themselves do not really cause as much wear and tear on the ground as other ungulates. I have worked with babirusa in a grassy exhibit before, and the grass held up very well without the expert and attentive horticulture team that the Cincinnati Zoo has. There will definitely be some wear to the vegetation, but that is going to occur with pretty much any animal (otters can also be quite hard on their environments!). Just because there’s a babirusa doesn’t mean that it’s going to be a barren wasteland in a year.
