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Part II


Spotted hyenas are one of the few animals in which the young perform siblicide.

Beginning only hours after birth, siblings of the same sex (usually they are both female) battle for dominance, biting each other and grabbing each other by the neck and shaking each other like two fighting adults.

The one that wins (firstborn has an advantage) keeps the other from nursing until it weakens and dies.

Because fighting occurs in the cubs' narrow tunnels, mothers are powerless to intervene.

This sibling rivalry kills an estimated 25% of all hyenas in their first month.

The surviving male grows faster and is likelier to achieve reproductive dominance; the surviving female eliminates a rival for dominance in her natal clan. There is no reproductive competition between siblings of opposite sex and consequently no killing.

Lactation period ranges from 6 to 12 months and each female suckles only her own cubs. Spotted hyena milk is very rich, having the highest protein content (14.9%) of any terrestrial carnivore, and the fat content (14.1%) is second only to the polar bear. Cubs of alpha female go to nearby kills and begin eating meat as early as 3 months, 4 to 5 months earlier than other offspring. However, most hyenas are not fully weaned until they are 14-18 months of age. Yearlings tag along on hunts but rarely become competent hunters before 1.5 years. Females usually stay with their natal clan, but males disperse when they reach 2 years old.

The male rarely participates in parental care, but if he is around when the cubs are growing, he may occasionally play with and chase them. Usually female cubs will stay with their mother in the clan and males will leave the clan in search of a mate.


Social Behavior


Hyenas live in groups called "clans" which consist of up to 100 members, mostly females (matriarchal society), living together in a territory that is regularly marked off and defended. They mark off the territory by pasting a sticky substance excreted form their anal glands onto grass. The clan members don't cooperate as much as members of other social animals, and fight often. Females dominate the males regularly through displays of aggression. The females within a clan maintain a strict hierarchy and compete with each other. Hyenas are vocal. They communicate through whoops, grunts and whining. Hyenas make a laughing noise when they are frightened. They "whoop" when they call the clan together for a hunt or a battle. Their greeting ceremonies consist of sniffing and licking of the genitals.

Often, the males, upset with the female dominance, "bait" the females of the clan. They do this by chasing them down and nipping at their hide until they give up. They can run top speed of 35 mph, and can attain a loping speed (6 mph) for great distances without stopping.


Relationship with other Predators


Hyenas will often steal kills from the smaller felids, such as cheetahs and leopards. They will watch a cheetah make a kill, then chase the exhausted cat away from its kill, since the cheetah is not strong enough to fight off the larger hyena, nor able to sustain severe injuries, since any injuries to the cheetah will impair its ability to hunt. A pack of hyenas will actually harass a leopard out of its meal, following the leopard until it climbs up into a tree and harass it from the ground, waiting for it to drop its kill to them below. They will sometimes catch the leopard with its kill before it has a chance to escape, and since a single leopard cannot fend off a pack of hyenas, it abandons its kill. Silver backed jackals pose no threat to the larger hyenas, who see them as more of a nuisance than an actual competitor. The more agile jackals will dart in and out of a kill that hyenas are feeding off of, and may even be so bold as to join them while they are eating. African wild dogs also compete with hyenas over food, and often steal the wild dog's kills. However, since African wild dogs travel in such large numbers, they can intimidate a hyena and have a better chance of protecting their kills. Wild dogs have been seen often stealing kills from hyenas just as often. Since the other predators in Africa, such as the serval, caracal, and other small wildcats, usually feed on small prey like rodents and birds, they are not in direct competition with the hyena, and thus have little to worry about.

The most dramatic relationship, however, is between hyenas and Africa's largest predator, the African lion.

There seems to be a constant war between these two gregarious species, and it is not always over food, either.

Normally, boundaries of another species are disregarded, but not in the case of the hyena and lion. They will put up boundaries against each other as they would against members of their same species, and threaten each other at the borders with snarls, roars, urine, and paste.

If one should happen to wander into the other's territory, it will be mauled by a gang from the other species.

A pack of hyenas can easily kill a lioness, and are enough to intimidate an entire pride.

Hyenas will kill lion cubs, and lions will kill both adult and juvenile hyenas. Lions will steal hyenas' kills just as many times as hyenas steal kills from lions.

Sometimes, a neighboring clan and pride will wage a war with each other, usually in the dry season during a severe famine or drought, when resources are low.

One will start, and invade the other's territory, and intimidate the other into leaving the area.

Often, prides with more than one male are at the advantage, and are less the target of hyenas as would be prides with one or no males,

since male lions are the only thing that truly intimidate a hyena.

The lion is the only natural predator of the hyena.