The lower-ranking members of the group will lick the sex organs of the higher-ranking females as a sign of continuous submission. Males of all ethnic groups lick the sexual organs of female leaders. Because the male at the top is below the female at the bottom, few female hyenas lick the male penis.
Females tend to mate with males of other races to prevent inbreeding. Female hyenas rarely mate with aggressive male hyenas. On the contrary, calm and obedient males will be selected. Patience is very important, because sometimes courtship can last as long as 1 year. Therefore, men who are superior and impatient will find it difficult to find a partner. Although courtship is complicated, females will raise their big cubs. Killing cubs is common, and other females (their mother's sisters) will kill them.
Hyenas of the same ethnic group rarely fight with each other until they are seriously injured. Many quarrels will be settled soon. It's enough to yell a little or bite each other, but if the fight gets out of control, high-level hyenas will do something to stop it. Even unknown hyenas try to avoid fighting or killing each other. The scent tag left by hyenas can also prevent disputes: if hyenas need to enter the territory of hostile hyenas, they will keep a low profile and try to stay at the border. There is a strong sense of hostility between females, because males of different races have the function of mating. Strange hyenas are rarely accepted by the ethnic group, but if they are accepted, they will only be the lowest in the ethnic group. If a large-scale confrontation occurs, such as with lions or other hyenas, hyenas will build a "wall" side by side and attack each other.
Like many other carnivores, spotted hyenas like to play, especially when they are young. Hyenas can be tamed, but many African aborigines and Europeans living in Africa can successfully domesticate hyenas.
Spotted hyenas excrete oily substances to distinguish their territory. Their anal bags will turn outwards, forming a posture of obeying the leader. They will also grasp the substances secreted on the ground with their claws to form the boundary of the smell. The spotted hyena is Nocturnal Animals. They rest in grass or caves during the day, wander around at night and forage everywhere. They hunt alone, in groups or together, and sometimes 40-60 animals hunt large animals such as zebras and bison in an organized way.
Although spotted hyenas are suitable for a carrion-eating lifestyle, most of their food comes from hunting. Their teeth are not specially used for carrion, but have developed into more "all-round". It seems that hyenas prefer medium-sized ungulates (such as wildebeest or zebra) to large animals (such as African buffalo) or small animals (such as Down's gazelle). Unlike wolves, hyenas choose their prey more by sight than by smell. Based on the hunting method, spotted hyenas generally choose animals with lower physical fitness in the group. The hunting pattern of spotted hyenas is similar to that of African wild dogs. They will chase their prey for a long time until they are tired. When hunting large prey, hyenas will bite the prey's lower body and tear its abdomen. Generally, they will eat viscera and foot muscles first. If the prey is a pregnant female, they will eat the fetus first and then the head. A Dalmatian can eat 14.5 kg of meat at a time, which is almost one third of their weight. This food intake is very high in mammals.
When hyenas collectively catch prey, they will rush in and bite the belly, neck, limbs and various parts of their bodies. In order to prevent lions from plundering their food, the whole group of hyenas wolfed down the meal together. Within a few minutes, the prey was divided up by them.
When spotted hyenas prey, they will adopt different tactics according to different situations. Spotted hyenas often attack wildebeests at night. After chasing them for 2-3 kilometers at a speed of 40-50 kilometers per hour, disperse the horses, quickly surround a wildebeest, and bite the nose, legs or waist of the wildebeest with powerful dog teeth until the wildebeest suffocates.
Spotted hyenas usually keep a speed of 60 kilometers per hour and chase adult angle motors 5 kilometers away. Spotted hyenas usually chase prey, but it's different if they are prey with high resistance. Wildebeests sometimes escape into the water to avoid being chased, but this does not prevent spotted hyenas from hunting. They often succeed in hunting. Although hyenas usually hunt in packs, one hyena is actually enough to kill adult male wildebeests. 75% of hyenas hunt alone, but the success rate of hunting alone is only 26%, which is dwarfed by the success rate of 2-4 hyenas in groups of 46%. In the face of hunting zebras, another skill is needed, because zebras are a whole group when they escape, and the zebras they lead will fiercely protect their companions. It usually takes 10-25 spotted hyenas to hunt zebras. They will hunt in crescent formation. Hunting is often slow, and the speed is only about 15-30 kilometers per hour. Zebras will try to get between hyenas and zebras. Once a zebra falls behind the horses, hyenas will jump up, which usually takes 3 kilometers to catch. Although hyenas will harass the zebra they lead, their purpose is actually to distract it, and the target is always in the zebra herd. Due to different habitats, spotted hyenas rarely attack African buffaloes, but there are still reports that they killed an adult male buffalo. Spotted hyenas also prey on other animals, including fish, turtles, black rhinoceros, hippopotamus, elephants, crocodiles, pangolins, honey badgers, wolves, lions, livestock, dogs and humans.
Spotted hyenas eat more carrion during the day, so they attract vultures at the same time. They are also closer to lions or humans than other African predators. They sometimes collect food. It is reported that some hyenas hide food in the water. Spotted hyenas drink very little water, usually for less than 30 seconds.
Their digestive system has strong stomach acid, which can help them completely digest the whole prey, including their skin, teeth, horns, bones and hooves. Due to the intake of a lot of calcium, their feces have a hard shell and are white. In addition, they can absorb nutrients from mummies. Hyenas spit out indigestible parts. In the breeding season of wildebeest, too many prey are captured, and hyenas will only choose some parts to eat, so many abandoned bones will be found in its dense places. Spotted hyenas will scramble to eat their prey, but they will compete rather than fight at the speed of eating. The complexity and density of the relationship between hyenas and lions are unique. Lions and hyenas are both top predators, hunting the same animal, so there is actually a direct conflict. So they will fight with each other and steal each other's prey. In Ngorongoro Nature Reserve in Tanzania, the number of hyenas greatly exceeds the number of lions, so in fact, it is often lions who steal hyenas' prey, not what people think is that hyenas steal lions' prey.
The fight between hyenas and lions is often over territory rather than food. The territory of many animals will only resist the same animal and ignore another animal. But the territory of hyenas and lions is against each other, as if against the same species. Lions are very aggressive towards hyenas. Someone once tried to kill hyenas without eating them. On the contrary, spotted hyenas are also the main predators of young lions. When attacking adult lions, hyenas chase females, but generally avoid attacking males.
In addition to hunting by themselves, hyenas often snatch prey caught by other carnivores, such as cheetahs and even lions. Their huge bite force is enough to scare off cheetahs, and they can snatch prey from lions when the number ratio is greater than three to one. Hyenas are the most vocal animals among African mammals, and more than 1 1 different sounds have been found. Groans/screams: generally used when greeting each other. High voice: Calling other companions, but the tone is different from sound waves. Fast, high-pitched sounds represent the position of conflict or prey. On the surface, the male's cry will be ignored, while the female will get an immediate response. Niu Ming: Impatient hyenas make this noise, for example, while waiting for their prey. Snoring: It is aggressive to make a low roar without opening your mouth. Roar: a deep and vibrating sound with protective behavior, used to warn the other party. Quack: A low, intermittent purr that sounds an alarm. Giggle: The loud giggle of the hunted hyenas represents extreme panic. Shout: Hyenas trying to escape from attackers will shout loudly.