Thread by @je_light

UP NEXT: #3 seed Berlin Boar (Sus scrofa) vs #7 seed Porcupine (Erethizon dorsatum) #2018MMM

The top-ranked competitor still has homefield advantage, so this Urban Jungle battle takes place in Berlin, Germany. Berlin Board & Porcupine don't have a lot in common; they last shared a common ancestor ~96 mya (timetree.org) #2018MMM

Did you know what "Porcupine" is Latin for "Quill Pig"? Follow #ActualLivingScientist @porcupinedoc for some more amazing porcupine facts #2018MMM

Usually, our Berlin Boar has a pretty easy run of things in the city. But March Mammal Madness has not been very kind to her. First a squirrel tried to steal some of her food & then a bobcat went after her piglets & left the Sow with a sliced eye #2018MMM

Our Sow needs some much needed rest & recovery; she just wants to crawl into bed & "pig" out on some sweets #2018MMM

But with little piglets, R&R is a luxury she's not going to get while the Babes are still young & nursing #lactation #ActualLivingScientist @Mammals_Suck. So, she settles for some fresh air in Tegel Forest on the NW side of Berlin #2018MMM

It is not uncommon for wild pigs to hang out in Tegel Forest (izw-berlin.de/pr/berlin-wild…) & sometimes attack! (pri.org/stories/2017-1…) #2018MMM

It's a warmer night & our Berlin Sow is rooting around for food at the base of a large spruce tree while trying to keep her one good eye on her piglets (who often behave like the pig in this gif #parentlife) #2018MMM

After dealing with a couple of aggressive primates in R1 & R2, our Porcupine also needs a break & a safe place to nibble on some bark. In this strange land (for this rodent, anyway), the best place for Porcupine is up a tree bit.ly/2pLKfzF #2018MMM

Tegel Forest is quite nice, & even with its poor eyesight, Porcupine easily spots a nice big spruce tree to climb & lumbers towards it #2018MMM

This so happens to be the same spruce tree in use by our Berlin Sow & her piglets. Porcupine smells the Pigs before seeing them (Mama Sow still smells faintly of Nic Nacs from R1) #2018MM

But this is the best tree for the Porcupine. All the other trees nearby are too small to support its 12 kg frame (55 stoats #stoatsasmeasurement). This spruce must be climbed & defended! Porcupine gets on his game face, erects his quills, & shuffles forward #2018MMM

With all the piglet noise, Berlin Sow doesn't hear the Porcupine advancing. And with her one good eye on her piglets, Berlin Sow is BLINDsided!! #2018MMM

Porcupine collides with the Berlin Sow, depositing 80 quills onto her backside #2018MMM

The startled Sus scrofa barks in surprise. Startled Wild Pigs can be extremely dangerous #2018MMM

But, with a brood in tow, our Berlin Sow bee-lines it out of the woods, with her piglets close behind #2018MMM

Porcupine lumbers forward, climbs up the spruce, parks it on a limb, takes in the lovely views of Tegel Forest, & sighs #2018MMM

PORCUPINE DEFEATS BERLIN BOAR!!! #2018MMM