Some recent encounters with real wildlife in and around Beijing:
1. Hog Badger
Yesterday, on a path in a forest in the mountains north of Miyun during a hail storm, your correspondent encountered a beast that ran like a dog but had a snout like a pig. The beast and I both stopped, shocked, then it ran off into the undergrowth.
It seems that the beast was a hog badger. According to Internet sources (Badgerinfo and Badger Pages), the species is found throughout much of south east Asia and China. Not much is known about the hog badger, but its survival is threatened by deforestation and hunting.
From Steve Jackson’s Badger Pages (also source of image reproduced here):
Names
The hog badger is also known as the hog-nosed badger, the bear-pig and the sand badger. The Italian … is tasso naso di porco, and the German is Schweinsdachs. In China, the hog badger is called Zhu-huan [猪獾] … while in Indonesia it is known as pulusan or babi batang….
Social organisation
Hog badgers are said to be playful animals, the young especially so. However, I have found no information regarding social organisation or territoriality. An account of the status of the hog badger in India states that most sightings of the species are of single animals [b130-02], suggesting that the species is solitary…
…Food and feeding behaviour
The hog badger is omnivorous, and roots in the ground rather like a pig to find its food. The following food items are eaten:
* Earthworms
* Other ground-living invertebrates
* Roots and tubers
* Fruits
2. Huang Shulang
This animal lives in hutongs in central Beijing, and has been spotted several times in the last few months by your correspondent in Dongcheng District. In Chinese it’s called huang shu lang (黄鼠狼) colloquially, or huang you (黄鼬). It seems to be the Yellow Weasel (Mustela sibirica).
Baidu’s Baike encyclopedia says that the weasel does not have a good reputation because of a proverb about weasels who ‘steal chickens under the guise of wishing a family happy new year’. However, according to a few Dongcheng residents, it is lucky to see a weasel.
If any Danwei readers have more information about hog badgers or about folk customs associated with the huang shulang please leave them in the comments or email jeremy at danwei.org.
UPDATE:
• Random hutong ayi view: Hitting a huang shulang is bad luck (‘你打它，就倒霉了’)
• There is lots more information about these wild beasts in the comments sections below. Thanks to all of the commenters.