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| Spotted Hyena - Crocuta Crocuta | |
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| Tweet Topic Started: Jan 7 2012, 08:21 AM (35,721 Views) | |
| Canidae | Jan 9 2012, 08:52 PM Post #31 |
Omnivore
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Hyena Heirachy, O.P'ed by Taipan - High-Born Hyena Sons Benefit Their Entire Life ScienceDaily (Aug. 25, 2010) — High-ranking mothers provide their sons with a privileged upbringing and this increases their son's success after leaving home. This was now demonstrated for the first time in a social mammal, the spotted hyena, by a research team lead by scientists from the Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research (IZW). The results are presented in this week's issue of the scientific journal Nature Communications. In many social mammals, there is a strict linear dominance hierarchy among the group members. In these societies, high-ranking mothers have preferential access to resources and can invest more in their offspring than lower-ranking mothers. As a result, their offspring often survive better than those of lower-ranking mothers. Whether high maternal investment also influences the long-term reproductive success of sons was unknown until now. To investigate this question, the scientists measured growth, behaviour and reproductive success of sons from mothers of different rank in a population of spotted hyenas in Tanzania. "Sons of high-ranking mothers grew faster, joined groups with more females likely to choose them as sires, sired offspring at a younger age, and had a higher reproductive success than sons of lower-ranking mothers," says Dr Oliver Höner from the IZW. High-ranking mothers thus invested more in their sons than lower-ranking mothers and this had a significant effect on the long-term reproductive success of their sons. The study is the first to demonstrate the influence of maternal social status and investment on offspring that leave the group in which they were born when they are young. The study also shows that the maternal influence on offspring is more important and far-reaching than previously suspected. Previous studies reported that mothers can influence the body size and fighting ability of their sons. In spotted hyenas, however, male reproductive success does not depend on body size or fighting ability. "The males rather need to conform to the mate-choice preferences of the females and develop friendly relationships with them because in spotted hyena society females are dominant and decide which male sires their cubs," explains Dr Höner. Thus, the fact that mothers influence which group their sons select and at what age they start to reproduce indicates that mothers also influence the behaviour of sons. „Until now it was unknown whether in social mammals mothers gain long-term benefits from investing in sons. This arises from the practical difficulty of measuring both the maternal investment and the reproductive success of sons -- in mammals, male offspring usually leave the group in which they were born when they turn adult, making it difficult for observers to monitor them throughout their lives," explains Dr Bettina Wachter from the IZW. Dr Marion East from the IZW adds: "A unique aspect of this study is that the life histories of a large number of dispersing male hyenas were documented and the results advance our understanding of maternal effects in social mammals." For their study, the scientists monitored all hyenas from the eight clans in the Ngorongoro Crater in Tanzania -- currently more than 500 individuals -- during a period of 14 years, established the dominance hierarchies among the clan members, collected genetic samples from more than 800 hyenas and determined the fathers of 650 offspring using molecular genetic methods. "Only with such a large-scale and long-term study were we able to monitor the life histories of a sufficiently large number of sons and match them with their reproductive success in the new group," says Dr Wachter. This study was conducted in collaboration with scientists from the University of Bielefeld and the University of Sheffield in the UK and was supported by the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft.  Spotted hyena family on African savannah. High-ranking mothers provide their sons with a privileged upbringing and this increases their son's success after leaving home. Journal Reference: 1. Höner OP, Wachter B, Hofer H, Wilhelm K, Thierer D, Trillmich F, Burke T, East ML. The fitness of dispersing spotted hyaena sons is influenced by maternal social status. Nature Communications, 2010 DOI: 10.1038/ncomms1059 http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/08/100824110916.htm |
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| Canidae | Jan 9 2012, 08:53 PM Post #32 |
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Oppurtunistic Hyena, O.P'ed by Chacarodon - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=syraIVrl9no Hyena hunting ducks http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k0wgiE-UUMQ Hyena hunting a flamingo http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g4-u16Zuq1g Hyena hunting a flamingo |
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| Canidae | Jan 9 2012, 08:55 PM Post #33 |
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Hyena Communication, O.P'ed by Taipan - Hyenas 'greet friends' to ask for their help Page last updated at 10:07 GMT, Monday, 10 January 2011 By Victoria Gill Science and nature reporter, BBC News Research has revealed how the very sociable spotted hyena engages its "friends" in group activities. Female hyenas carry out greeting ceremonies - standing side by side and sniffing each other - before embarking on a group task. This appears to reinforce social bonds before a potentially risky activity, such as a hunting trip or an attack on an enemy predator. The findings are reported in the journal Animal Behaviour. Dr Jennifer Smith from the University of California, Los Angeles, led the team of researchers. They studied adult female spotted hyenas, Crocuta crocuta, in a large female-dominated social group in Kenya.  Female hyenas have enlarged penis-like genitalia Professor Kay Holekamp from Michigan State University, who also took part in the study, explained that the animals, also known as laughing hyenas, live in "fission-fusion" societies. "They live at the top of a food pyramid, so there's a lot of competition for food and they often separate to hunt," she told BBC News. "So they're on their own a lot, but they come together when they need to form a coalition - to defend their territory, for instance." This constant wandering and returning is key to why greetings are so important to the animals. "You usually see greetings when two animals come together having been separated for an extended period," said Prof Holekamp. Social excitement This rather intimate sniffing will be a familiar sight for any dog-owner. But for hyenas, a very unusual feature of their anatomy is involved in these ceremonies. Females, which are considerably larger and socially more dominant than males, have enlarged penis-like genitalia. This pseudo-penis becomes enlarged when the animals are "socially excited". "Previously, scientists thought that an erect phallus was a sort of flag of submission to another hyena," said Prof Holekamp. But she and her team have now found that, rather that an indication of lower social status, this excitement, and the subsequent ceremonious sniffing, were a way for the animals to gather support. "We saw them engage in these greeting ceremonies and then form a coalition to mob a lion," said Prof Holekamp. Trying to scare away another top predator in this way is very risky, and the greetings appear to "get all the animals on the same emotional plain", she explained. http://news.bbc.co.uk/earth/hi/earth_news/newsid_9344000/9344556.stm |
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| Canidae | Jan 9 2012, 08:56 PM Post #34 |
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Hyena intelligence, O.P'ed by the Dinosaur Dude - Sociable, and Smart By CARL ZIMMER Published: March 4, 2008 For the past two decades, Kay E. Holekamp has been chronicling the lives of spotted hyenas on the savannas of southern Kenya. She has watched cubs emerge from their dens and take their place in the hyena hierarchy; she has seen alliances form and collapse. She has observed clan wars, in which dozens of hyenas have joined together to defend their hunting grounds against invaders.  “It’s like following a soap opera,” said Dr. Holekamp, a professor at Michigan State University. Throughout her career, Dr. Holekamp has remained vigilant against anthropocentrism. She does not think of the hyenas as long-eared people running around on all fours. But the lives of spotted hyenas, she has concluded, share some profound similarities with our own. In both species, a complex social world has driven the evolution of a big, complex brain. Scientists have long puzzled over the enormous size of the human brain. It is seven times larger than one would predict for an average mammal of our size. Many of our extra neurons are in a region called the frontal cortex, where much of the most sophisticated thought takes place. To understand how we ended up with such a strange organ, many scientists have turned to our fellow primates. They also have large brains, although not as large as our own. It turns out that primates with a big frontal cortex tend to live in large groups. Primates may be pushed into larger groups thanks to predators or to patchy sources of food like fruit trees. As their numbers grow, natural selection may favor social intelligence. The primates form long-term alliances with each other and compete with rivals. They begin to keep track of a larger and larger social network.  A boost in social intelligence can lead to an evolutionary edge for primates. Well-connected female baboons, for example, dominate their bands. They have more babies than lower-ranking females, and their babies enjoy better health and faster growth. Brain imaging studies have revealed that when people think about other people, parts of the frontal cortex become active. Advocates of the social brain hypothesis say the frontal cortex expanded in our ancestors because natural selection favored social intelligence. Most of the research on the social brain hypothesis has focused on primates. One reason for that bias, Dr. Holekamp said, is many scientists thought that no other animals were worth studying. “Primatologists have argued for years,” she said, “that primates are unique in terms of the complexity of their social lives.” From her experience with hyenas, Dr. Holekamp had her doubts. So she began to run experiments on spotted hyenas similar to the ones run on primates. She would play recordings of hyenas, for example, to see if other hyenas recognized them individually. They did. She soon came to see the primates-only view of the social brain as deeply flawed. “I would argue that’s not true at all: spotted hyenas live in a society just as large and just as complex as a baboon,” Dr. Holekamp said, noting that spotted hyenas live in the largest social groups of any carnivore. “We’re talking about 60 to 80 individuals who all know each other individually.” To understand the social intelligence of hyenas, Dr. Holekamp and her colleagues track the animals from birth to death. Their work begins in the communal dens where the cubs live for their first few months. Crawling into the dens, a network of underground chambers, is Dr. Holekamp’s least favorite part of her job. “The hyenas are the least of your trouble,” she said. “You know when the mom’s there and when she’s not. But is there also a warthog in there that’s going to take off your face with its tusks? Is it a cobra?” Older spotted hyenas pay regular visits to the dens, giving the cubs an opportunity to learn about the rigid hierarchy in which they live. Spotted hyena societies have one dominant female at the top, and a series of hyenas below her. Each cub learns exactly where it fits into the hierarchy, and where all the other spotted hyenas fit as well. The hierarchy reveals itself most vividly when it is time to eat. When one or two hyenas make a kill, other members of the clan will join them to fight over the prey. But the dominant female always wins. “An alpha female,” Dr. Holekamp said, “can waltz into any kill and eat as much she wants.” There are times, however, when the entire group of hyenas comes together. Spotted hyena clans patrol the borders of their territory together, marking it with their urine. A kill near a border can provoke a conflict with a neighboring clan. “When the whole group territory is on the line,” Dr. Holekamp said, “all these unrelated individuals join forces and engage in a clan war.” What makes the social complexity of spotted hyenas particularly enlightening, Dr. Holekamp said, are their relatives. They belong to a family of four species, and the other three live in strikingly different societies.  Brown hyenas, for instance, live in much smaller clans that range up to about 14 animals. Although scientists do not know much about brown hyenas, it seems that some clans live in a hierarchy, while in others, the hyenas enjoy more equality. Striped hyenas live in even smaller groups of a single female and no more than three adult males. The males mate with the female, but they seem not to have much else to do with her. The most solitary of all the spotted hyena’s relatives is the aardwolf. Instead of hunting or scavenging meat, they have shifted to a diet of termites. A male and female aardwolf will live as a monogamous pair, caring for their young and defending their termite mounds from intruders. Dr. Holekamp wonders if this range of social arrangements is reflected in the structure of hyena brains. It was not an easy idea to test. “Their brains certainly aren’t just lying out on the savanna,” she said. “It’s really very hard to get hold of them.” While it may be difficult for scientists to get their hands on intact hyena brains, hyena skulls are not so hard to come by. From a CT-scan of a hyena skull, it is possible to reconstruct the three-dimension structure of the brain it held. “You can see all the indentations and protuberances on the surface of the brain,” Dr. Holekamp said. In recent months, Dr. Holekamp has been working with Sharleen Sakai and Barbara Lundrigan, both at Michigan State, to survey dozens of skulls from all four species in the hyena family. Their preliminary results indicate hyenas follow the same rule as primates. “It’s just what the social complexity hypothesis would predict,” Dr. Holekamp said. “The hyenas with the simplest social systems have the tiniest frontal cortices. The spotted hyena, which lives in the most complex societies, has far and away the largest frontal cortex.” The brown and striped hyenas, with intermediate social systems, have intermediate brains. “There’s a spectrum,” Dr. Holekamp said. Joan Silk, an expert on monkey societies at the University of California, Los Angeles, praises Dr. Holekamp’s research, calling it “directly relevant to our understanding of the origins of social complexity and intelligence.” While the intelligence of hyenas may be similar to that of primates, Dr. Holekamp is also struck by the differences. Primates are immensely curious, but she does not see much evidence of inventiveness in hyenas. “But maybe that’s not a fair question,” she said. “Maybe we’ll have to ask about this in relation to other carnivores, where you would expect hyenas to be very curious and innovative.” To get an answer to that question, Dr. Holekamp and her colleagues are running intelligence tests on wild hyenas. They are putting meat into boxes and placing them on the savanna. “The animal can see it and smell it,” Dr. Holekamp said, “but it can’t get it unless it can figure out how to slide a bolt from right to left to open the door.” Dr. Holekamp hopes to determine how innovative hyenas are compared with other carnivores. It is possible that, along with social complexity, intelligence can also evolve in other ways. “An animal is going to be favored to be innovative if that will help it get food, regardless of whether it lives in a group,” Dr. Holekamp said. By comparing hyenas and primates, as well as other mammals, Dr. Holekamp believes it will be possible to get a full picture of how intelligence evolves. “There’s a tremendous support for the social brain hypothesis,” she said, “but I think that in order to understand the origin of intelligence we have to think more broadly than that.” http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/04/scienc....OG/PO8u6CBlOgQg |
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| Canidae | Jan 9 2012, 08:57 PM Post #35 |
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Hyena Counting, O.P'ed by Taipan - Hyenas' Ability to Count Helps Them Decide to Fight or Flee ScienceDaily (Aug. 22, 2011) — Being able to count helps spotted hyenas decide to fight or flee, according to research at Michigan State University. When animals fight, the larger group tends to win. In the current issue of Animal Behaviour, Sarah Benson-Amram, an MSU graduate student studying zoology, showed that hyenas listen to the sound of intruders' voices to determine who has the advantage. "They're more cautious when they're outnumbered and take more risks when they have the numerical advantage," said Benson-Amram, who conducted the study through MSU's BEACON Center for the Study of Evolution in Action. "Hyenas appear to be as capable as chimpanzees or lions at assessing their advantage." The finding supports the concept that living in complex social groups, as hyenas, lions and chimpanzees do, is one of the keys to the evolution of big brains, Benson-Amram added. Even though spotted hyenas live in clans of up to 90 individuals, they spend much of the day in much smaller, more vulnerable groups. When researchers played recordings of potential intruders, the hyenas' reaction depended on how many voices they heard compared to how many fellow pack members surrounded them. Groups of three or more hyenas were far more likely to approach the source of sound than pairs or individuals. This study was the first to show that hyenas can tell the difference between individual voices, and most of the animals in the study could distinguish up to three different voices, said Kay Holekamp, MSU zoologist and BEACON researcher, whose field study of spotted hyenas in Kenya has been ongoing for more than 20 years. "The recordings were taken from hyenas from other parts of Africa," she said. "But even though the voices were unfamiliar, the hyenas in the study were able to tell when they were from the same or different animals." MSU students Virginia Heinen and Sean Dryer also contributed to the study. BEACON is an NSF-funded Science and Technology Center headquartered at MSU, with partners at North Carolina A&T State University, the University of Idaho, the University of Texas and the University of Washington.  Sarah Benson-Amram, MSU graduate student, demonstrated that hyenas' ability to count helps them decide to fight or flee. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Journal Reference: Sarah Benson-Amram, Virginia K. Heinen, Sean L. Dryer, Kay E. Holekamp. Numerical assessment and individual call discrimination by wild spotted hyaenas, Crocuta crocuta. Animal Behaviour, 2011; DOI: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2011.07.004 http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/08/110822131809.htm |
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| Canidae | Jan 9 2012, 08:59 PM Post #36 |
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Hyena intelligence, O.P'ed by Monsoon / Hyaenidae - On the intelligence of Crocuta crocuta and how it can be used as a model system for the study of the evolution of intelligence: Socioecology of Spotted Hyenas "Spotted hyenas are large terrestrial predators occurring throughout sub-Saharan Africa. Although they occupy a different trophic niche from primates and have various sensory capabilities not shared with primates, hyenas nevertheless exhibit many remarkable similarities to cercopithecine primates with respect to their life histories and to the size and complexity of their social groups (Table 1). Like macaques and baboons, spotted hyenas are large-bodied mammals with slow life histories. Although the hyena's diet matches that of other large African carnivores (Caro 1994; Kruuk 1972; Mills 1990; Schaller 1972), the foods of both hyenas and cercopithecine primates generally occur in rich, scattered patches appearing unpredictably in space and time. Female hyenas bear litters containing only 1 or 2 cubs, and they nurse each litter for up to 24 months. Thus, hyenas, like primates, produce small litters at long intervals, and their offspring require an unusually long period of nutritional dependence on the mother. Both hyenas and primates experience a long juvenile period during which every individual must learn a great deal about its physical and social environments. Male hyenas reach reproductive maturity at 24 months of age, and most females start bearing young in their 3rd or 4th year. Like many primates, hyenas have a long life span; they are known to live up to 19 years in the wild (Drea and Frank 2003) and they live up to 41 years in captivity (Jones 1982). The complexity of spotted hyena societies is comparable in most respects to that found in societies of cercopithecine primates, and far exceeds that found in the social lives of any other terrestrial carnivore (e.g., Gittleman 1989, 1996; Holekamp et al. 2000). These hyenas live in permanent complex social groups, called clans, composed of 6–90 individuals. All members of a clan recognize each other, cooperatively defend a common territory, and rear their cubs together at a communal den (Henschel and Skinner 1991; Kruuk 1972). Like cercopithecine primates, hyenas establish enduring relationships with clan-mates that often last many years. Clan size and territory size vary with prey abundance across the species' range, but the clans inhabiting the prey-rich plains of eastern Africa are as large as sympatric baboon troops (e.g., Sapolsky 1993) and they often contain more than 70 individuals (Kruuk 1972). Like baboon troops, hyena clans contain multiple adult males and multiple matrilines of adult female kin with offspring, including individuals from several overlapping generations. Relatedness is high within matrilines but, on average, clan members are only very distantly related because of high levels of male-mediated gene flow among clans, and mean relatedness declines only slightly across clan borders (Van Horn et al. 2004). Like many primates, hyenas within each clan can be ranked in a linear dominance hierarchy based on outcomes of agonistic interactions, and priority of resource access varies with social rank (Andelman 1985; Frank 1986; Tilson and Hamilton 1984). As in female cercopithecine primates, dominance ranks in hyena society are not correlated with size or fighting ability; instead, power in hyena society resides with the individuals having the best network of allies. In both hyenas and cercopithecine primates, members of the same matriline occupy adjacent rank positions in the group's hierarchy, and female dominance relations are extremely stable across a variety of contexts and over periods of many years. One interesting difference between hyenas and cercopithecine primates in regard to rank is that adult female hyenas dominate adult males, whereas male cercopithecines dominate females. However, as in virtually all cercopithecine species, male hyenas disperse voluntarily from their natal groups after puberty, whereas females are usually philopatric (Boydston et al. 2005; Cheney and Seyfarth 1983; Henschel and Skinner 1987; Mills 1990; Smale et al. 1997). Although adult natal male hyenas dominate adult females ranked lower than their own mothers in the clan's dominance hierarchy while they remain in the natal clan, when males disperse they behave submissively to all new hyenas encountered outside the natal area. This is the time during ontogenetic development at which females begin to dominate males (Smale et al. 1993, 1997). When a male joins a new clan, he assumes the lowest rank in that clan's dominance hierarchy (Smale et al. 1997). Immigrant males rarely fight among themselves; instead they form a queue in which the immigrant who arrived 1st in the clan holds the highest rank in the male hierarchy, and the most recently arrived male the lowest (East and Hofer 2001; Smale et al. 1997). In contrast to social groups of most cercopithecine primates, which tend to be extremely cohesive, hyena clans are fission–fusion societies in which individuals spend much of their time alone or in small groups, particularly when foraging (Holekamp et al. 1997a, 1997b). Ungulate carcasses represent extremely rich but ephemeral food resources; a group of hungry hyenas can reduce a large antelope to a few scattered bones in less than half an hour. Competition when feeding at carcasses is therefore extremely intense, and dominant hyenas, who can most effectively displace conspecifics from food, gain access to the choicest bits and largest quantities of food. Hyenas often require kin and other allies to defend a carcass from other clan-mates. In addition, hyenas need allies during cooperative defense of the clan's territory against alien conspecifics (e.g., Boydston et al. 2001; Henschel and Skinner 1991). Members of multiple hyena matrilines frequently cooperate to defend their kills against lions or hyenas from other clans, and by doing so risk serious injury or death (Boydston et al. 2001; Henschel and Skinner 1991; Hofer and East 1993; Kruuk 1972; Mills 1990). Help from clan-mates is also often required while hunting ungulate prey: the probability of successfully making a kill increases by approximately 20% with the presence of each additional hunter (Holekamp et al. 1997b). Thus, as in cercopithecine primates, the enduring cooperative relationships found among these long-lived carnivores affect survival and reproduction of individual group members." Conclusions "The social complexity hypothesis posits that big brains and great intelligence have been favored by selection pressures imposed by life in challenging social environments (Byrne and Whiten 1988; Humphrey 1976; Jolly 1966). De Waal and Tyack (2003) suggest the most challenging societies are those in which animals live in stable multigenerational units, group members recognize each other individually, individuals cooperate as well as compete for resource access, and a substantial amount of learning occurs during social development. Although some primatologists claim primate societies are more complex than those of other mammals (e.g., Dunbar 2003), we disagree. Work to date on spotted hyenas has shown that they live in social groups just as large and complex as those of cercopithecine primates, that they experience an extended early period of intensive learning about their social worlds like primates, that the demand for social dexterity during their competitive and cooperative interactions is no less intense than it is in primates, and that hyenas appear to be capable of many primate-like feats of social recognition and cognition. Much remains to be learned about social cognition in hyenas. For example, we do not yet know whether hyenas use hierarchical classification of rank and kinship, as occurs in baboons (Bergman et al. 2003). Nor do we know to what extent hyenas might be able to “keep score,” as tamarins do (Hauser et al. 2003), of earlier altruistic and selfish acts directed at them by conspecifics. Whether hyenas are capable of tactical deception or cultural transmission of behavior will not be known until the appropriate controlled experiments can be conducted. In any case, along with odontocete cetaceans and elephants, hyenas continue to offer a useful model system in which to test hypotheses suggesting cognitive abilities that distinguish primates from other mammals. Furthermore, a comparison between the cognitive abilities and brains of spotted hyenas and those of other hyena species with less complex social systems should allow us to determine whether convergent evolution of brain and behavior has occurred in nonprimate mammals in response to social complexity." http://www.bioone.org/doi/abs/10.1644/06-MAMM-S-361R1.1 |
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| Canidae | Jan 9 2012, 09:02 PM Post #37 |
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Reddhole on Hunting, data from Hans Kruuk - Below is single hyena prey selection and success data from the Serengeti plains and Ngorongoro Crater. Overall, adult wildebeest are a very significant portion of diet. Hyena prey selection will of course vary by geographic area. Source: Haans Kruuk, "The Spotted Hyena" 24 Adult Wildebeest Killed - 45% Success Rate The following chart shows single hyenas had ~ 45% success rates in 24 hunts of adult wildebeest. This results in 11 adult wildebeest killed.  11 Wildebeest Calves Killed - 15% Success Rate The following chart shows single hyenas had a 15% success rates in 74 hunts of wildebeest calves. This results in 11 wildebeest calves killed. Success rate was lower due to aggressive defense by wildebeest mothers and IMHO lots of alternative easier to kill wildebeest calves (wildebeest have calves all at once resulting in many calves available to predators).  2 Adult Thomson Gazelle and 10 Thomson Gazelle Calves Killed - 36% and 20% Success Rate The following chart shows 42 out of 49 hunts of all thomson gazelle ages were done by one hyena. If we take percentage, which is 86% and multiply by numbers of gazelle killed in second chart we can get a reasonable estimate of thomson gazelle killed by single hyenas. Thomson gazelle adults had a 20% success rate in 10 hunts resulting in 2 kills. Multiplying by 86% still results in 2 kills when rounding so I used kept this as number of adult thomson gazelles killed by single hyenas. Hyenas had a 36% success rate in 33 thomson gazelle calf hunts resulting in 12 kills. Multiplying 86% by 12 kills results in 10 thomson gazelle kills by single hyenas.   2 Hares and 1 Four Month Old Warthog Killed The following excerpts detail hunts of hares and warthog. Notice hyenas often share habitat with warthogs, which perhaps causes hyenas and warthogs to have some sort of tolerant relationship generally?   Adult Wildebeest Make Up Significant Portion of Single Hyena Diet in Serengeti and Ngorongoro on a Frequency and Biomass Basis Hyenas made the following kills with following percentages: Adult Wildebeest: 11 kills (30%) Wildebeest Calves: 11 kills (30%) Adult Thomson Gazelle: 2 kills (5%) Thomson Gazelle Calves: 10 kills (27%) Hares: 2 kills (5%) 4 Month Old Warthog 1 kill (3%) 37 kills (100%) However, on a biomass basis, which is arguably more important to a predators survival (i.e. how they get their calories), adult wildebeest is much more significant. However, due to scavenging from other hyenas/other predators it may not be as important in this area as other places. Below is data on weights of most species. Adult wildebeest in Ngorongoro were a bit heavier (181 kg). Since hyena predation occurred in both areas I took the average between the Serengeti and Ngorongoro weights (177 kg). Other species had nearly identical weights so just used the ones from Serengeti chart below. I used 2 kg for african hares I saw on the web and took 1/3 of 17 kg for warthogs based on newborn piglets weighing 1 kg and year old warthogs weighing 17 kg. Overall, adult wildebeest made up 89% of the diet on biomass basis. Adult wildebeest are clearly the most important prey item in terms of survival for single hyenas (particularly in Ngorongoro where hyenas scavenge very little).  Adult Wildebeest: 11 kills * 177 kg = 1,947 kg (89%) Wildebeest Calves: 11 kills * 16 kg = 176 kg (8%) Adult Thomson Gazelle: 2 kills * 21 kg = 42kg (2%) Thomson Gazelle Calves: 10 kills * 2.5 kg = 25 kg (1%) Hares: 2 kills * 2 kg = 4 kg (0%) 4 Month Old Warthog 1 kill* 6 kg = 6 kg (0%) 37 kills 2,200 kg 100% Single Hyena Average Prey Weight Is 60 Kg We can compute average prey weight for single hyenas by multiplying proportion of kills by average prey weight as follows: 30% (177 kg) + (30%*16 kg) + (5%*21 kg) + (27% *2.5 kg) + (5%* 2 kg) + (3%* 6 kg) = 60 kg Edited by Canidae, Jan 9 2012, 09:02 PM.
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| Canidae | Jan 9 2012, 09:04 PM Post #38 |
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And finally something from me! To those who don't think clan confrontations are serious! The Clash of Clans24 Aug 2011 Sighting: The Clash of Clans! Location: Seba Camp, Abu Concession, Botswana Date: July 2011 Observers: Seba Camp Staff Photographers: Joseph Molekoa It is a rare day that there are no guests in camp in the busy month of July but one that does come along does not go by idly. It was such a day at Seba Camp. Staff were using this opportunity to busy themselves around camp, giving it a good spring clean, when the sounds of numerous hyaena cut through the morning. The typical high-pitched yelping, whooping and hysterical high-pitched giggling noises made by hyaena broke the peaceful rhythm, encouraging everyone to drop what they were doing to investigate what the ruckus was all about. Right in front of the mess tent at least a dozen hyaena were engaging each other in fierce battle, snapping, snarling, biting and literally ripping at each other. Staff watched in horror from the safety of the front deck, while these ferocious creatures tore into each other, no one side willing to admit defeat, despite a lot of blood and gore. It seemed, at first, quite evident that this was a territorial dispute. Hyaena can live in clans numbering up to 90 individuals in certain areas, that defend group territories, making territorial battles a serious matter. Territorial disputes normally arise due to food resources or in defence of the clan den. The hyaena clans around Seba are normally quite tolerant of each other and one can only surmise that this fierce battle might perhaps have been due to the fact that one of the clans had recently produced pups and the other clan approached too close to the den. Although, looking back at the photographs and chatting to the guides, it now appears as if another scenario might have been playing out. A hyaena clan is led by a dominant female known as the "Alpha" female. The first-born female of the alpha female is the natural successor to her mother should she become too infirm to lead the clan. As the battle ensued, it became apparent that one particular, rather mature female appeared to have been targeted, suggesting that perhaps they were witnessing the dethroning of the alpha female by her daughter. If this was the case, then it makes the whole incident even more of a privilege to witness. Although these fights appear extremely cruel, we have to accept that this is one of nature's ways of thinning out the infirm and survival of the fittest. Perhaps it was time for the princess to become queen? The fight continued all morning and progressed right through the camp ending up under one of the guest tents where the victim was being severely mauled. She eventually managed to get away but not without some serious injuries. Both her ears were ripped off and she looked in extremely poor shape. She dragged herself into the lagoon in front of the guest tent and lay there for ages looking as if she would never emerge again. But, to the great surprise of all the spectators, she finally managed to drag herself up slowly and disappeared into the undergrowth. The bets were on that she would just lie somewhere quiet and perish. To everyone's surprise, she has subsequently been seen near Abu Camp. Her injuries are healing slowly and to the amazement of all, she is a survivor - but presumably her fighting days are over. And the den? Well, that is sporting some cute cuddly hyaena pups!       http://www.wilderness-safaris.com/news/unusual_sightings_detail.jsp?newsItem=26224 =================== Savage spotted hyaena harassment Location: Linyanti area, Botswana Date: 27 January 2009 Observers: Ray and Tegan Rothlisberger We found the Savuti area absolutely awesome on a recent visit; The Savute Channel is simply amazing. I never thought I would see the day when water had again penetrated as far as it has! We had great sightings all round with really good cheetah viewing. The highlight however occurred whilst on our last morning drive. We heard a huge commotion from some spotted hyaenas in thick bush. We followed the sounds and came across three hyaenas fighting with "something". They were in some dense undergrowth and it took us a bit of time to realise they were in fact fighting with a fourth hyaena. One of the "attackers" left the scene when we arrived but the other two continued to attack the one. After a while (some 30 minutes in all), the two attackers left their victim and wandered off. The hyaena was seriously injured and struggled to walk. His one ear had been almost ripped off and he was battling to get up.    We then left the sighting as all the animals moved off. We drove into the open and stopped for a tea break. After about 15 minutes, we heard them start fighting again for a short period. We left our tea spot and following some vultures and the sounds came across a wildebeest carcass with eight hyaenas feeding. We also noticed the hyaena which had been attacked lying off to the one side, barely moving. The feeding hyaenas paid little attention to the injured one apart from the two large "attackers" who went over periodically to sniff and occasionally bite the injured hyaena. Finally, one of them went over and started feeding on its back leg whilst it was still alive. It was a rather bizarre sighting: Gruesome, brutal and savage but fascinating. The only conclusion we could come to was that the group of eight hyaenas were one clan and had chased a lion off its kill (there was a lioness in the area) and a lone hyaena from a different clan had heard them and come to investigate. They then proceeded to attack it resulting in such serious injuries as to cause its death. In this matriarchal society the females are larger and heavier than the males and dominate them to such an extent that they often form an 'interloper' class and perhaps this was the case with the savaged hyaena. http://www.eyesonafrica.net/updates/2009/upd_jan09-1.htm Edited by Canidae, Jun 26 2013, 12:38 AM.
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| Ursus arctos | Jan 10 2012, 12:18 AM Post #39 |
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Autotrophic Organism
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| Ursus arctos | Jan 10 2012, 12:55 AM Post #40 |
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Autotrophic Organism
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Edited by Taipan, Apr 12 2012, 09:13 PM.
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| Red Dog | Jan 13 2012, 02:40 AM Post #41 |
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From Reddhole: Below is a very interesting study about changing hyena habits in the Ngorongoro. Many of you are aware of the fact that hyenas hunt most of their food in Ngorongoro and lions scavenge alot from them because of a high hyena-lion ratio. This is largely based off of Haans Kruuk's study in the 1960's (I summarized it in the Spotted Hyena profile). This new study can be found here: http://www.blackwell-synergy.com/toc/jae/71/2 Click: "The response of spotted hyaenas to long-term changes in prey populations: functional response and interspecific kleptoparasitism" - Full PDF Apparently, the hyena-lion ratio has decreased from 14-1 to 4.2-1 and the percentage of hyena diet from animals they've killed dropped from 93% to 69%. The study also details how hyenas predation habits changed with decreasing wildebeest, zebra, gazelle, and increasing buffalo populations. In the 1960s, hyenas selected (i.e. killed disproportionate to their overall numbers) juevenile wildebeest, zebra, and gazelle. In later years, they continued to select young wildbeest and gazelle, but also selected adult wildebeest and young buffalo. Adult buffalo were avoided. Table 1 on page 239 details this. The number of each prey killed, their proportion in the hyena's kills and overall prey population is listed. In particular, the "selection ratio" quantitatively indicates how strongly each prey was selected. Table 3 lists numerous hyena-lion interactions, including the ages and sex of lions and the number of lions and hyenas. As expected, hyenas did not have much luck with male lions around. It also lists the state of the carcass that was already eaten, which may influence the lions incentive to fight for it. The study also discusses that Ngrongoro hyenas steal more carcasses from lions (females and subadults only) than Chobe Park hyenas because Ngorongoro hyenas live in higher densitities and can recruit more hyenas to exceed the critical 3 hyena - 1 female/subadult lion ratio. Read more: http://carnivora.proboards.com/index.cgi?action=userrecentposts&user=reddhole#ixzz1jGTtLFtE |
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| Red Dog | Jan 13 2012, 05:09 AM Post #42 |
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Below is a very interesting study about changing hyena habits in the Ngorongoro. Many of you are aware of the fact that hyenas hunt most of their food in Ngorongoro and lions scavenge alot from them because of a high hyena-lion ratio. This is largely based off of Haans Kruuk's study in the 1960's (I summarized it in the Spotted Hyena profile). This new study can be found here: http://www.blackwell-synergy.com/toc/jae/71/2 Click: "The response of spotted hyaenas to long-term changes in prey populations: functional response and interspecific kleptoparasitism" - Full PDF Apparently, the hyena-lion ratio has decreased from 14-1 to 4.2-1 and the percentage of hyena diet from animals they've killed dropped from 93% to 69%. The study also details how hyenas predation habits changed with decreasing wildebeest, zebra, gazelle, and increasing buffalo populations. In the 1960s, hyenas selected (i.e. killed disproportionate to their overall numbers) juevenile wildebeest, zebra, and gazelle. In later years, they continued to select young wildbeest and gazelle, but also selected adult wildebeest and young buffalo. Adult buffalo were avoided. Table 1 on page 239 details this. The number of each prey killed, their proportion in the hyena's kills and overall prey population is listed. In particular, the "selection ratio" quantitatively indicates how strongly each prey was selected. Table 3 lists numerous hyena-lion interactions, including the ages and sex of lions and the number of lions and hyenas. As expected, hyenas did not have much luck with male lions around. It also lists the state of the carcass that was already eaten, which may influence the lions incentive to fight for it. The study also discusses that Ngrongoro hyenas steal more carcasses from lions (females and subadults only) than Chobe Park hyenas because Ngorongoro hyenas live in higher densitities and can recruit more hyenas to exceed the critical 3 hyena - 1 female/subadult lion ratio. Read more: http://carnivora.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=zoological&action=display&thread=2646#ixzz1jH5NCWz1 |
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| Canidae | Feb 9 2012, 02:18 AM Post #43 |
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Omnivore
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In virtually every study population for which prey preferences are known, spotted hyenas prey most heavily on herbivores weighing 15-250 kg. Lone hyenas in the Mara regularly bring down topi and wildebeest, which each weigh roughly three times the hunter's body mass: we once even saw a lone hyena kill an adult zebra. Thus, contrary to the beliefs of many people, spotted hyenas are very effective predators. From : Behavioral Ecology of Tropical Animals By H. Jane Brockmann, Regina Macedo & Charles T. Snowdon. A very good book with more good data I will try to post later. This young hyena was found killing a fully grown zebra! The zebra must have been sick or injured, reminding us that there is no place for the weak in Africa!  http://www.eyesonafrica.net/updates/2013/upd_mar13-2.htm "So does Deane (1962), who earlier (1960) decribed the kill of an apparentley healthy wildebeest by one hyena, as observed from tracks in the sand." The Spotted Hyena - A study of predation and social behaviour. By Hans Kruuk Hyena strength - "I have seen a hyena run up beside a yearling and pull it off its feet with one bite in the side." The Serengeti Lion - A Study of Predator-Prey Relations. By George B. Schaller. Yearling wildbeest can be 100 - 150 Kg, very variable. Video instances of lone Hyenas killing adult Wildebeest : Reported instances of lone Hyena killing Wildebeest from tourism sites: THE HYENA KILL! After five minutes we spotted a whole herd of wildebeest running a few metres away from where we were. It was a hyena that they were trying to get away from. The persistent hyena continued to chase them for about ten minutes when finally it paid off. The hyena caught up with one wildebeest and began dragging it behind the herd . The hyena, without wasting any time, started to bite chunks of meat from the poor wildebeest. To our surprise, after a few bites, the hyena decided to walk away, leaving the wildebeest bleeding terribly. We were left puzzled as to why she left and wondered where she would be off to? Then the wildebeest, out of exhaustion, lay down. At this point, it was difficult to watch if you are soft hearted. After about half an hour, the hyena came back to the scene. She went straight to the still straggling wildebeest and continued to feed. It took more than twenty minutes more before the wildebeest finally went down and kicked its last kick. From here : http://www.wildwatch.com/sightings/the-hyena-kill -------- Spotted hyena kills a one year wildebeest. A group of six spotted hyena had gathered on the open plain, watching with great interest at the wildebeest that were about a hundred meters away, walking on a straight line across the plain. After few minutes watch the spotted hyena chooses to go for the youngest wildebeest of an approximate one year old. The rest of the herd moved off quickly and the hyena chased the young wildebeest for more than twenty minutes, the young wildebeest get exhausted and the hyena started biting their pray from behind, the wildebeest stops several times fighting back .The wildebeest making a large grant sound, call for help, and the hyena became even more louder, cackle and screaming ten minutes after the wildebeest was fully exhausted from bleeding and it dropped. The hyena prey from rear and fiercely competing tore the wildebeest apart. We wondered where the other members of the hynena's clan was all this period of time! It is so unusual for something like this to happen since there are more than seventy individuals in her clan. This kill happened right in the centre of their territory. http://www.wildwatch.com/sightings/spotted-hyena-kills-a-one-year-wildebeest -----  "This morning we discovered a hyena feeding on a large male kudu carcass. Although it was still very fresh, there was no sign as to what might have killed it. There were no visible bite marks on its throat, and the blood surrounding the carcass was bright red, indicating that it was oxygenated. We therefore surmised the cause of death to be a lung wound, most probably as a result of a fight with another male. The hyena was already nice and full by the time we arrived, and by evening there was nothing left of the carcass. No doubt the rest of the clan had since joined their mate to share in the spoils." http://blog.malamala.com/index.php/2011/10/cyberdiary-2-october-2011/ - However, I disagree. Kruuk and Mills both used red blood around the mouth and head as a clear indicator that hyaenas were the killer. Also the presence of a lot of blood shows it is fresh (no congealment) and unlikely to be scavenged. The hyaena in the picture certainly has plenty of blood on it, and any bitemarks would be on the undercarriage area of the animal not on the throat like a big cat. Hyaena take large or impressive antelope prey alone and I.M.O could do, and I would say this Kudu was killed by the hyaena going on criteria used by zoologists mentioned above. However, the hyaena may have selected the bull Kudu as it may indeed have been wounded or tired from intraspecific fights. Males can often be the least healthiest in the population, or spend the most time alone making them easier targets. Ruling out the hyaena as the predator in the basis of it being a hyaena is a narrow-minded, old fashioned view I.M.O! -------- From Hyaena Nights & Kalahari Days by Mills & Mills :  From Predator-prey relationships amongst the larger mammals of the Kruger National Park by Pienaar (1969)  ---------- Lone Spotted Hyaena hunting Gemsbok / Calves Info In the Kalahari desert, the spotted hyaenas' favoured prey is Gemsbok and this has been in study by Eloff (1964) and by Gus Mills in his study of Kalahari Hyaenas : Kalahari Hyenas: Comparative Behavioral Ecology of Two Species Info on hyaena predation and Gemsbok horn growth "Gemsbok calves up to one year of age are the most frequently killed animals by southern Kalahari Spotted Hyaenas, and their success rate at catching these prey is relatively high (63%). Although they are present throughout the year, the distribution and numbers of gemsbok calves is such that the hyaenas are often forced to cover large distances before encountering them. Adult Gemsbok can normally defend themselves against spotted hyaenas with their long rapier-like horns, which are well developed in both sexes. The shape of the horns, the fact there is little sexual dimorphism and their use in defence against spotted hyaenas and lions (Eloff 1964), suggest that the main evolutionary pressure on horn development was for defence against predators (see Packer 1983). Gemsbok do not have the speed of hartebeest or springbok, nor the stamina of wildebeest. Moreover, the comparatively rapid rate at which their horns grow in the first year (Table 3.10), also suggests that defence is an important function of Gemsbok horns. Once gemsbok are one year old and their horns are approximately three-quarters of the adult's length, spotted hyaenas have difficulty in overpowering them." Approximate percentage of adult horn length at different ages in various antelope species" Gemsbok - 6 months : 53% 12 months : 72% 18 months : 83% (The measurements for other antelope can be posted if others are interested) Following on from the horn info, Gemsbok calves are quite large at an early age too. From plates from the book and pictures 9 / 10 month Gemsbok calves are already considerably bigger than hyaenas and resemble slightly smaller adults with long horns too. Just how big calves are when they outgrow hyaenas and start to resemble adults I do not know. In the book, 'calves' are Gemsbok up to 1 year old and as said can be big, quite mature animals and not the bleating newborn often associated with the term 'calf'. Instances mentioned in the book of lone hyaenas killing calves, and the possibilty a lot of calf kills may be done singly too. "(a)A single hyaena seperated a calf from a herd of about 50 gemsbok. After 2.9 km the calf began ro circle slightly and was caught 0.8km on. ... (c) One hyaena encountered three calves which it chased. After 200 m two calves doubled back past the hyaena, which continued to chase the third. This one also tried to double back past the hyaena, but was unable to do so. After 200m the calf ran around in a large circle but was eventually caught by the hyaena after a total chase of 850m. ... "When several hyaenas encountered a herd of gemsbok with calves, it appeared that the hyaenas hunted independently of one another. On one occasion, discerned from spoor, two hyaenas ran into a herd of about 100 gemsbok with at least 3 calves. Each hyaena selected a calf, the first pulling one down after a chase of 0.45km, the second killing the other after a chase of 2.2 km." The danger of Gemsbok horns Whilst no kills of adult Gemsbok by lone hyaena were reported in Mills' study, Eloff in his study On the predatory habits of Lions and Hyaenas (1964) reported both.  This I.M.O is an impressive feat considering the high danger of Gemsbok and the fact it was an adult (Gemsbok mature at roughly 2) : "Females become sexually mature at about 2 years of age," : http://www.kalahari-meerkats.com/fileadmin/files/guides/Mammals_at_KMP_light.pdf To show Gemsbok danger, in Eloff's study multiple kills of lion :  and hyaena were talked of :  ---------------- Whilst the following incidents are not of lone hyaenas, it is of big game hunting from the Kalahari often with a small number of hyaenas. Kudu The only Kudu hunted were two bulls which were killed by the same hyaenas in the space of four nights. From spoor it was discerned that at least three hyaenas had chased the first bull for more than 1 km. In the second case, 10 hyaenas chased independently after several kudu. The two hyaenas that I was following stopped after 0.9 km, turned around and then ran off in a different direction for 1.5km, to where four others had pulled down a bull. Eland Of the 14 interactions between eland and spotted hyaenas that were judged to be hunting attempts, seven (50%) were successful (Fig.3.31). On two occasions the hyaenas managed to kill two calves at a time. Once, nine hyaenas were walking along the Nossob river bed when three young eland calves came running towards them - the hyaenas killed two of the calves (Fig.3.32), but the third somehow escaped. On another occasion (discerned from spoor), two hyaenas ran into a herd of eland and each brought down a calf after successful chases of 300m and 400m. ... Once, the hyaenas gave up the chase after 0.3km, but in the remaining five instances the eland, ranging in number from 1 to 15, defended themselves either by swinging their horns at hyaenas, or by standing in a circle with their heads together and kicking vigorously at then with their hind legs. Only one adult eland kill was seen. Three hyaenas located a cow on its own after following a scent trail for 1.3km. As they ran up to it, the eland defended itself for a few seconds, then ran off. It was caught after a chase of 0.9 km, and killed within 5 m, putting up little resistance. While the hyaenas were feeding a small calf appeared, which a hyaena ran up to and killed. The data from eland hunts are too few to statistically test the relationship between hunting success and group size, although this does not appear to be strong. (Table 3.8) The tenacity and opportunistic nature of the spotted hyaena's hunting behaviour is illustrated in the case of three hyaenas following a herd of about 20 adult eland for 23.8km. Eventually, after challenging the eland several times, they managed to get a hold of a sub-adult bull and, after a struggle which stretched over 1km, kill it." From : Kalahari Hyenas: Comparative Behavioral Ecology of Two Species Unlike zebra, eland and a lesser extent kudu do not need large numbers of hyaenas to hunt them - whilst lone hyaena have killed zebra this is rare. No. of hyaenas in a hunt depends more on how aggressive and active the defense of the prey species is over it's sheer size. ======== Hyena kills a Giraffe.JPG  http://guycolborne.photoshelter.com/image/I0000WQl3mXZMtyM Hyaena kills young giraffe. ======== http://video.nationalgeographic.co.uk/video/animals/mammals-animals/other-mammals/hyenas-vs-warthog-leopard-predation/ The video linked has 2 -3 hyaenas killing an adult warthog. Deane 1962 also reported hyaena predation on warthogs but the specifics (and paper) can't be found anywhere to my knowledge. Hunter's Cats of Africa also reported 3 hyaenas killing an adult warthog but the kill was appropriated by 5 lionesses. Edited by Canidae, Nov 7 2013, 01:17 AM.
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| Canidae | Apr 12 2012, 08:44 PM Post #44 |
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Omnivore
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Recent research by Michigan State University doctoral student Jennifer Smith has shed new light on the way spotted hyenas live together and – more importantly – hunt for their food alone. In a paper recently published in the journal Animal Behaviour, Smith, a student in MSU's Department of Zoology, shows that while spotted hyenas know the value of living together in large, cooperative societies, they also realize that venturing on their own now and then to hunt for food is often the key to their survival. "Although spotted hyenas do cooperatively hunt, there is a large cost for doing that," said Smith, who did her research at the Masai Mara National Reserve in Kenya. "This cost is feeding competition within their own group." The problem is that spotted hyenas live in a social group, they all know each other and there is a well-established hierarchy. So when a kill is made, it is the spotted hyenas that are higher up on the totem pole that get to eat. Smith and colleagues report that spotted hyenas do join forces to protect themselves from danger. They aggregate to defend their food from their natural enemy – the lion, and cooperate during turf battles with neighboring hyenas. And, it is easier for spotted hyenas to catch prey when they do so in teams. "Although spotted hyenas are 20 percent more likely to capture prey with one or more members of their social group, cooperative hunting results in multiple new competitors showing up because former allies quickly turn into noisy competitors once the kill is made," she said. "So it's the individual, especially if he or she is low in the hierarchy, that suffers a cost for having group members at that prey." It is known that more than a million years ago spotted hyenas were solitary scavengers. "My research," said Smith, "shows because there is this cost of competition, that spotted hyenas retained this ability to remove themselves from the larger social group to hunt." Scientifically speaking, this is known as fission-fusion dynamics – members of the same society repeatedly splitting up from the group (fission) and then reuniting (fusion). "Human societies exhibit fission-fusion dynamics," Smith said. "For example, we repeatedly depart from our loved ones in the morning and then rejoin them in the evening." Spotted hyenas, like humans, frequently leave one another but rejoin on a regular basis to maintain social relationships, especially with family members. Collaborating with Smith were Kay Holekamp, MSU professor of zoology, and fellow MSU students Joseph Kolowski, Katharine Graham and Stephanie Dawes.  MSU zoology student Brittany Gunther took this photo of a fight between a group of spotted hyenas and a lioness while taking a study abroad class at Kenya's Masai Mara National Reserve. Pause at 00:33 and you'll see it's the video of the picture! Link to the paper, if anyone has an account? : http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0003347208001814 http://www.wildbiology.com/research/Spotted_hyenas_can_increase_survival_rates_by_hunting_alone.asp Edited by Taipan, Apr 12 2012, 09:12 PM.
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| Canidae | May 23 2012, 07:28 AM Post #45 |
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Omnivore
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Hyena Predation on Buffalo http://www.birdsasart.com/bn197.htm   Buffalo Kill at Little Makalolo Camp 15 Jul 2010 Location: Little Makalolo Camp, Hwange National Park, Zimbabwe Date: 11 July 2010 Observer: The Makalalo Team We had just finished enjoying brunch when we noticed a lone buffalo bull limping to the pan in front of Little Makalolo Camp. The old male was past the prime of his life and we quietly mentioned amongst ourselves that he would probably soon be taken by lions. Such is the circle of life here in Hwange. Little did we know of what was to happen... The buffalo stayed around at the front pan in the shade for the remainder of the afternoon and as evening descended, the predators emerged. Just after dusk, guide Charles and his guests were on their way back into camp and came across a leopard. They were so enjoying this sighting that they almost missed what was about to take place. A clan of about seven spotted hyaena had pushed the buffalo towards the waterhole where he eventually took what little refuge he could by standing in the centre of the pan. This however did not deter the hyaena as they eventually followed into the water. Spotted hyaena are far from being mere scavengers; as a clan they are formidable hunters too. One of the hyaena made a swift move and latched onto the buffalo's tail, which in the strong jaws of a hyaena was ripped off like a piece of chewed liquorice. The hyaena clan was in a deep state of salivation and cackling in anticipation. The buffalo, surrounded and unable to flee, could not do anything and just had to try standing his ground in increasing futility. With all the chaos, some of the hyaena moved slightly to one side, giving the buffalo a chance to escape and headed straight for Little Makalolo Camp - stopping about five metres from the main dining area. We waited, holding our breath, wondering what would happen next. The usual dinner under the stars was cancelled for obvious reasons! During the course of dinner the buffalo did not move much and neither did the patient hyaena. Not even 15 minutes after the camp lights were out the hyaena launched their second and fatal attack. Kim and Charles witnessed the whole event but more by sound than by sight. The buffalo tried to escape but it collapsed in a heap due to exhaustion and blood loss and at this moment the hyaena started to feed. Walking to the main area in the morning, by the light of day, we got a detailed look at the buffalo carcass with one hyaena still in attendance. The carcass was dragged further away from camp, and we watched as other scavengers, such as jackals and vultures, arrived to finish off the carcass over the next couple of days.   http://wilderness-safaris.co.za/news/camp_news_detail.jsp?newsItem_id=18659 ----------------  From : Spotted Hyena: A Study of Predation and Social Behaviour ---------------  From : Ecology and Behaviour of the African Buffalo: Social Inequality and Decision Making --------------- Picture series from the Okavango Delta, Botswana. Unknown on the Buffalo's fate.    ------------ Another picture from the Okavango Delta, Botswana. Unknown on the Buffalo's fate here too, but is described as 'downed'.  A spotted hyena, Crocuta crocuta, attacking a downed African buffalo. http://www.nationalgeographicstock.com/ngsimages/explore/explorecomp.jsf?xsys=SE&id=1006035 ----------------- "The distress calls of animals carry to predators, in particular Lions, Hyenas and Jackal that will then react to the sound. I have observed a single Hyena in the Okavango Delta tackling an old Buffalo bull that was unable to stand up. The Hyena happened on the old bull by chance and sensing that the Buffalo was in trouble the Hyena began to bite at various parts of the body, moving away each time the bull struggled. After a while the Buffalo began to bellow at each bite. Within minutes eight more Hyenas were on the scene and the Buffalo was killed quickly." http://www.botswana.co.za/Botswana_Wildlife_Behaviour-travel/predator-hunting-techniques.html Edited by Canidae, Dec 14 2013, 11:40 PM.
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