Spotted Hyena - Crocuta
crocuta
Spotted hyena is the larges
most common hyena. At night, spotted hyenas wage a relentless and
feaful boundary war with other hyenas clans and also with resident
lion prides.
The hyena has a huge skull with extremely
powerful jaws and forequarters. They have large ears and a sloping
back. Its strong jaw holds outer incisors that work as extra canines.
It has an anal scent gland and is believed to have glands between
the toes to mark its territory. Genitalia is identically masculine
in both sexes until puberty.
They have been much underrated as predators.
While they will scavenge if food is availiable they are proficent
hunters in their own right.
Hyena play a valubale role in controlling
the spread of disease by cleaning up dead animals before the meat
can rot.
The unwary visitor to Savuti
who leaves food in an accessible place for hyenas is sure to be
relieved of it overnight. Foor in this instance includes toiletries,
kitchenware, clothing and even binoculars! Due to the high bone
content of their diet their scat turns a chalky white when dry which
makes the social latrines that are used to demarcate boundaries,
highly visible.
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