Spotted Hyena (Crocuta crocuta)

[TheHyenid76]

Hunting Success in the Spotted Hyena: Morphological Adaptations and Behavioral Strategies

Abstract

Once considered mere scavengers, it is now widely recognized that hunting is more important than scavenging in the feeding ecology of spotted hyenas (Crocuta crocuta). In this chapter, we outline the extraordinary morphological and behavioral adaptations possessed by these bone-cracking hyenas for efficient hunting and foraging within the context of their complex social organization. These social carnivores live in female-dominated societies structured by fission-fusion dynamics in which individuals hunt alone or in small groups to avoid feeding competition but join forces in large-scale cooperation with kin and non-kin groupmates to defend food from African lions (Panthera leo) and members of neighboring groups of hyenas. We discuss how social rank and age influence every aspect of their hunting behavior and consider the inevitable trade-offs faced regarding cooperative hunting of ephemeral prey. Finally, we evaluate what is known about the cognitive demands and conservation implications associated with the behavioral flexibility possessed by these efficient hunters.

Fig. 5.1 Spotted hyenas are efficient predators able to capture prey exceeding their own body size such as wildebeest and oryx. Individual spotted hyena hunters capture most ungulate prey items when hunting alone or in pairs, but some prey, such as plains zebra, may only be taken down cooperatively (photos by Jennifer Smith, Gus Mills, and Joey Verge)

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Fig. 5.2 Data from a comprehensive meta-analysis of 15 studies on spotted hyenas observed in six different countries across the full geographic distribution of spotted hyenas demonstrates the common and infrequently killed prey of spotted hyena in relation to prey availability. Reprinted with permission from Hayward (2006) (Figure 1, page 610), Journal of Zoology, 270(4)

*This image is copyright of its original author

Fig. 5.3 Spotted hyenas are efficient hunters that directly kill 60–95% of the prey they consume and regularly capture prey nearly three times their own size, such as the wildebeest (above) and a hippo (below). Their powerful jaws permit these bone-cracking hyenas to devour the entire prey item to a pile of bones in a matter of minutes (photos by Heather E. Watts and Kate Yoshida)

*This image is copyright of its original author

Hunting Success in the Spotted Hyena: Morphological Adaptations and Behavioral Strategies Reply