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Pictured: Pigs hunt for acorns near Burley in the New Forest.

Swine dining..

Pigs in the New Forest are having a field day as their job of eating up all the fallen acorns has been extended by a month due to a glut of the nut.

Every autumn the swine is let loose on the Hampshire National Park to scoff the acorns that are poisonous to the famous New Forest ponies.

The ancient tradition, called Pannage, usually finishes in mid-November when the fattened up pigs are brought in for slaughter.

But the hot and dry end to the summer has resulted in thousands of oak trees becoming laden down with the fruit.

Some 600 domestic pigs have been happily hoovering up the acorns since September and they've now been granted an extension until December 9.