Brown Hyaena (Parahyaena brunnea) lives in african savanna grasslands across Southern Africa. It feeds on carrion & scraps. Its conservation status is Near Threatened.
Fascinating facts about the Brown Hyaena
- Only a few thousand brown hyenas roam Southern Africa, making them the rarest of their family. The global population is estimated by IUCN at a number between 4,000 and 10,000 and its conservation status is marked as near threatened in the IUCN Red List.
- A brown hyena can stretch up to 144 cm long, stand 70-80 cm at the shoulder, and weigh as much as 43.7 kg, while its neck and back are covered in erectile hairs up to 305 mm long that bristle during fights. Those dimensions give it a compact, muscular build that lets it crush springbok leg bones in just five minutes, a bite power that declines only as its teeth wear down with age.
- Nighttime is prime hunting time for brown hyenas: 80 % of their activity occurs after dark as they roam an average of 31.1 km in search of food, defending territories that can stretch 54.4 km across. When they find more than they can eat, they stash leftovers in shrubs or holes and retrieve them within 24 hours, a strategy that turns a fleeting kill into a reliable pantry.
- Scavenging defines the brown hyena's menu, yet only a sliver of its meals are live prey. In the southern Kalahari Desert, springhare, gemsbok and other small animals make up just 4.2 % of its diet, while on the Namib coast, jackals and seal pups account for 2.9 %. Its nose can sniff carcasses kilometers away, and when it spots a kill, a single hyena will charge a leopard with jaws wide open, sometimes even treeing the big cat.
- Brown hyenas live in tight clans of four to six relatives, led by the oldest female. A male can climb the rank ladder by killing a higher-ranking male, while young males often leave to join other groups. Females first breed at two years, have a three-month gestation, and usually give birth to 1-5 pups weighing about 1 kg; the dominant female usually produces the litter, but if two litters appear, mothers will nurse each other's young.
Sources
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At a glance
RangeSouthern Africa
HabitatAfrican savanna grasslands
DietCarrion & scraps
About the Brown Hyaena
In the arid expanses of southern Africa, the brown hyaena roams with a quiet confidence, its tawny coat blending seamlessly into the sun-baked landscape as it pads silently through the scrub. With a distinctive gait, it moves with a loose-limbed elegance, its powerful shoulders rolling in a slow, deliberate rhythm as it navigates the rocky outcrops and dusty valleys in search of carrion and scraps. As a scavenger of unimpeachable reputation, the brown hyaena is a master of the shadows, its remarkable adaptability and cunning allowing it to thrive in a world where others might falter.
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Brown Hyaena photographed on Feravox
