Large Black pig
Large Black boars
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| Conservation status | Vulnerable |
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| Other names | Devon pig or Cornwall Black |
| Nicknames | Large Black Hog |
| Country of origin | Great Britain |
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The Large Black, occasionally called the Devon, Cornwall Black or Boggu, is a breed of domestic pig native to Great Britain, particularly Devon, Cornwall and Essex. The Large Black is accurately named, as it is a large swine breed and is the only British pig that is entirely black. It is a hardy and docile pig, with Large Black known for having large litters. The breed's foraging ability make it particularly useful for extensive farming, while a poor candidate for intensive farming.
The Large Black combined local black pig breeds from the West Country and the East of England. With the founding of a breed association in 1898 or 1899, variations between the types from the two areas decreased. The Large Black was popular in the early 1900s and was exported to many areas of the world. Population numbers declined after the Second World War as farmers turned to breeds more suitable to intensive pig farming, and by the 1960s the breed was almost extinct. Numbers have slowly risen, but it is still considered vulnerable by the Rare Breeds Survival Trust, the , and Rare Breeds Canada.
The Large Black resulted from the amalgamation of black pigs from two geographically separate areas, Devon and Cornwall in the south-west of England, and Essex, Suffolk and Kent in the east. The pigs from eastern England, mainly Essex, were influenced by importations from China in the late 18th century, while those from Devon and Cornwall were probably more closely related to the pigs in mainland Europe, particularly France. The Devon pigs were originally selected for "the length of their bodies, ears, noses, tail and hair, the longer the better, without reference to quality or substance", but selective breeding brought improvements to the breed, and by 1850 the type was small-boned and thick-bodied, with good conformation and constitution. Alternative origins proposed for the black colour of the breed are black Guinea hogs imported from Africa (similar to the Guinea Hog of the US) or from Neapolitan pigs.
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