Hair characteristics of Indonesian Suidae: database for forensic identification

Animal hair examination may provide valuable information on forensic investigations. However, there are limited data on the hair histology of Indonesian mammals for serving as a database for identification. The present study provides histological analyses of the dorsal guard hairs of the Indonesian Suidae species Sus scrofa, S. barbatus, S. verrucosus and S. celebensis, which were examined from the collections of Museum Zoologicum Bogoriense, National Research and Innovation Agency. Comparative analysis was performed by light and scanning electron microscope. Different features of each animal species' hair were identified based on the morphology, cuticle scale pattern, type of medulla, pigmentation and cross-section characteristics. The results show that the cuticle scale pattern is an irregular wave in all species. The cuticle scale margin is rippled, and the distance between scales is close. The hair medulla is amorphous in all species. The hair pigmentation is yellowish-reddish in all species, but no pigmentation of hair is found in S. verrucosus. The cross-section shape of the hair shaft is different in all Indonesian Suidae species, which can be used for identifying the species of Indonesian Suidae.