Order: Carnivora
Family: Hyaenidae
Size: up to 110-170 cm in length (head to tail)
Weight: - up to 25-55 kg.
Key Features: the striped hyaena is dog-like in appearance, with powerful forequarters and a back that slopes down towards the tail. It gets its name from the black stripes on the sides of the pale grey or beige coat, which is long and shaggy except for on the face and limbs. A crest of particularly long hair, running from the head to the tail, is erected in situations of conflict to make the hyaena look larger and more intimidating. The striped hyaena has a long, thick neck, which along with the strong skull and jaw bones enables the hyaena to break up dry bones. The black and white tail is long and bushy and the feet bear short, blunt claws.
Breeding: Female striped hyaenas give birth to litters of one to four cubs after a gestation of 90 to 91 days. They give birth in a rocky den or a burrow, preferably dug by another animal. The hyaena cubs open their eyes after seven to eight days, their teeth erupt after 21 days, and they begin to eat meat at an age of 30 days.
Diet: includes seeds, leaves, fruits, insects, birds, fish, and many species of mammal.
Habitat: Striped hyaenas inhabit dry areas, from savanna to true desert.
Habits: The striped hyaena is most frequently seen singly or in pairs, although groups of up to seven can occur. Social contact is limited by the need to forage alone over very large ranges, which they do so under the cover of night. When moving around regularly used paths within their territory, grass stalks are marked with a secretion from the anal pouch, leaving a clear sign to any intruders of the owner’s presence. If neighbouring hyaenas do happen to meet, they fluff out their fur and erect their crest in an attempt to look intimidating and fights may erupt in which they nip at each other’s thick necks.
Conservation Status: Least Concern on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.
Distribution in the GoK: reported along the coast of Gulf of Kachchh.
References:
Kingdon, J. (1997) The Kingdon Field Guide to African Mammals. Academic Press Ltd, London.
Mills, M.G.L. and Hofer, H. (1998) Hyaenas. Status Survey and Conservation Action Plan. IUCN/SSC Hyaena Specialist Group, IUCN, Gland, Switzerland and Cambridge, UK.
Mills, M.G.M. and Bearder, S.K. (2006) Hyena Family. In: Macdonald, D.W. (Ed) The Encyclopedia of Mammals. Oxford University Press, Oxford.
Wagner, A.P. (2008) Pers. comm.
Stuart, C. and Stuart, T. (1997) Field Guide to the Larger Mammals of Africa. Struik Publishers, Cape Town.
Leakey, L.N., Milledge, S.A.H., Leakey, S.M., Edung, J., Haynes, P., Kiptoo, D.K. and McGeorge, A. (1999) Diet of striped hyaena in northern Kenya. African Journal of Ecology, 37(3): 314 - 326.
IUCN Red List. http://www.iucnredlist.org/details/10274/0
Photo Courtesy
Sumeet Moghe, Licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons
Striped Hyena (Hyaena hyaena)
