First look as the ‘ugliest pigs on earth’ arrive at London Zoo

Animal lovers can look forward to seeing something a little different at the London Zoo, following the arrival of the "ugliest pigs on earth".

Two hairless, so-called "demon pigs" of the babirusa species, named Budi and Beth, can now be seen at the Regent’s Park site.

The pair were born at Chester Zoo and moved to their new home this summer as part of a new international breeding programme.

Beth is two years old, while Budi is one. Budi, the male, will eventually grow the crooked spiral tusks seen on indigenous members of the species found on the Indonesian islands of Sulawesi, Togian, Sula and Buru.

They first arrived at London Zoo shortly before the site opened to visitors on June 15, with limited capacity and new social distancing measures in place.

“With their wrinkly grey skin and long wet snouts, no-one could call babirusa pigs beautiful,” said zookeeper Hannah Joy.

“In fact, their traditional nicknames aren’t kind at all; people who live alongside them in Indonesia call them rat pigs or demon pigs, because of their long, misshapen tusks – which are actually teeth growing through their noses that curl backwards.

"The way they wag their long stringy tails when they’re happy is a joy to see.”

For more information, head to zsl.org