Police have shot dead a dangerous wild boar that had been roaming around the prestigious Wuhan University in central China's Hubei Province.

Students first became aware of the animal last March, when they found it snuffling through long grass on the campus in the provincial capital of Wuhan. Images of the boar were also captured by a university surveillance camera in November.

A dozen police officers from Xianning City searched for hours before they discovered the boar on a hill on the campus and killed it with hunting rifles on Wednesday, according to the provincial public security department. The officers had the approval of provincial forestry authorities.

Local media said the boar weighed about 100 kg.

Police said they had no idea how the animal got onto the campus or how long it had been there.

Wild boars have sharp teeth, and there have been instances of them attacking people in China. One killed a villager and injured three others when it ran into a village in Hubei Province in September 2012.

Wuhan University is famous for its beautiful campus. Cherry blossoms in the university grounds attract sightseers every year.