In praise of the much maligned hyena – Needs a PR makeover
The Spotted Hyena (Crocuta crocuta) is one of Nature's most poorly received creations. While it may be hard to find a general attitude toward hyenas amongst the diverse folklore of the African continent, historically there is certainly no shortage of scare stories or ill omens relating to this beast. Today, as a tourist visiting East Africa, one is most likely to be exposed to prejudice against the hyena when looking for its representation in local art. If one queries the absence of the hyena in the carved pantheon of animals, it is not uncommon to hear that the hyena is missing because it is believed to bring bad luck to those audacious enough to carve its awkward shape.
The western media's handling of the hyena has been more one-dimensional and singularly negative. Disney's Lion King - a film that is many children's first impression of the fauna of the Serengeti (at least for my generation) - served to enforce the image of the hyena as a wasteful coward on the fringes of decent animal society. Peter Jackson's adaptation of The Lord of the Rings adds insult to injury casting the wargs, those abominable steeds of the orc warriors, in hyena form.
A female hyena delicately holds a pup in her jaws. In an unsual twist, the pup holds one of its siblings. Copyright Wildlife Extra.
The hyena is by no means exclusively, or even predominantly, a scavenger, but the hyena does have to contend with the less than flawless appearance we often associate with scavengers. With oversized forelimbs and a barrel shaped gut, the locomotive aspects of the hyena's frame appear to have grown outside the usual boundaries of carnivore design. From the head down it seems to resemble something like an okapi, from the neck up maybe something like a mustelid but with a blunted snout. The hyena's ragtag appearance could not be further from the sleek presentation of Africa's big cats; cats of which it is no surprise retain immense popularity and respect throughout the world.
Masai and lions - Mutual respect
Respect goes a long way. Sometimes it goes too far. The Masai in respecting the lion have, in times past, killed them as a right of passage. The dimorphism of lions may provide the best explanation of why the male lion is such a natural target for Masai's spears. The male lion, being noticeably larger and stronger, can be taken to represent the high noon of patriarchy, the zenith of male power. Who could be a better adversary for the aspiring Masai warrior than a king with a golden crown, waited on by no less than a harem of Amazonian hunters?
The hyena, despite being an equally effective predator, never seemed a likely target for the Masai. This is because in the area of gender, by the standards of traditional patriarchy at least, hyenas break the mould. Watching a clan of hyenas, it is not so easy to distinguish between males and females. When one does make the distinction, one uncovers a strongly matriarchal structure binding the clan. Female spotted hyenas are considered masculinized by our standards (maybe our males are feminized by theirs!) and are led by a dominant female. Not only is her behaviour more aggressive than her male counterpart, but like her sisters she sports an elongated clitoris, which she both mates and gives birth through (ouch!) This pseudo-penis was understandably a source of much confusion for any early and naïve zoologist and led in some cases to an accusation of hermaphrodism. The spotted hyena, as was soon discovered, does not carry both male and female sexual organs (so what if it did?), but it is, for lack of a better term a ‘gender bender', and by blurring ‘conventional' mammalian gender roles the hyena was never likely to be the role model for aspiring young males. Subsequently the hyena may have been spared the occasional Masai spear but also a measure of respect they are due.
Lions get all the respect that hyenas are due. Copyright Wildlife Extra.
Shallow as it is to judge an animal's worth by what we find admirable about it, the reality remains that a great many people do. It follows that the hyena's lowly image is posing a threat to its future preservation. At present the spotted hyena's conservation status is marked as low risk, but is increasingly dependent on protected areas. When these areas start to shrink, image may be everything. As for its three relatives (the Brown Hyena, the Striped Hyena and the Aardwolf) they cannot, in their present state, afford to be guilty by association.
The truth is that the spotted hyena really does have some unique selling points. Accusations that once would have spoiled its reputation are up for reassessment. We have for one thing hopefully outlived some of the attitudes that remain prevalent in tribal custom. Although we have not reached a stage where sexual and gender differences are as openly and incontestably celebrated, as those of, for example, race, we have seen some significant advance in this area. As bizarre as it may sound, there may be something of a role model in the hyena for those seeking to challenge traditional gender roles, be it from the transgendered or feminist community.
National heroes
Another potential way, and one more likely to strike a chord with the Kenyans and Ethiopians who share finite space with these animals, is through illustrating how hyenas possess qualities akin to many of their nation's heroes. The hyena's position as an endurance hunter (just like the dwindling African Wild Dog) draws parallels with those who have excelled in Middle-distance and long-distance athletics, from the Kenyan male pioneers such as Kip Keino and Henry Rono to the latest Ethiopian female success story, Tirunesh Dibaba. If these countries are to transcend tribal differences, national icons in sport and nature may be very important. I think the hyena could have some role in bridging the two.
Hyena as ecologist
If one finds the idea of animals as role models or national icons implausible there is still much to be said for the hyena. Not only is the hyena a successful plains ecologist, recycling much of what no other animal's teeth, jaws, and digestive system can manage, but it is also an apex predator. People are fond of underdogs, and at a modest 45kg to 65kg the spotted hyena is hardly the biggest and most intimidating of creatures on the plains. And yet when it comes to hunting hyenas are capable of bringing down animals as large as buffalo, although it is said their favourite is zebra.
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.
In competing for limited resources hyenas often come to blows with lions, and this is where the hyena really demonstrates the underdog spirit. Far from being cowards, hyenas actually manage to hold their own, even against the King of Beasts. Amongst all the drama of the plains the blood feud that exists between lions and hyenas is one of the most fascinating. One-on-one a hyena stands little chance against a foe nearly 4 times its size, but through cooperation hyenas can intimidate lions off of kills, although the reverse is no less likely to occur. The competition and bickering for food between these predators can erupt into attacks and counter attacks. Sadly it is often the young in both parties who pay the price, although the matriarch in leading her clan can also become a prime target.
Teamwork
Ultimately, what the hyena accomplishes, whether taking down large prey, intimidating lions, or raising their young in such a hostile environment, is made possible only through teamwork. The complex social arrangements mandated by this teamwork have become an increasing point of interest for those in the field of sociobiology. Recent evidence suggests that the social structures of the spotted hyena is every bit as complex as those of baboons and vervet monkeys; even their brains have evolved in a similar frontal direction. No revelation then to hear World famous primatologist, Jane Goodall, speaking at the wildtalk@wildwalk series of lectures on the Great Apes, announce that if she had a chance to dedicate her life's work to another animal it would be the spotted hyena. But an academic interest here can easily translate into a public one. Complex social behaviour, with alliances and rivals played out against the backdrop of predatory conflicts is surely a wildlife filmmaker's dream and as night-time filming techniques improve hopefully hyenas will get the same level of coverage that is normally reserved for the big cats.
PR required
With fans in high places, it's time the world community followed suit. Our demands as fans of hyenas are small: we do not want to sentimentalise over what is a killer more brutal than most, but nature portrayed, is rarely nature as it is. Give us just one or two positive representations of the hyena in children's media (memo to Disney: ‘The Hyena Queen'). Give us a nature series that takes us into the heart of the clan exposing its subtle relationships (memo to the BBC: The Hyena Diaries); and if all that fails, then at least let me put some money in the hand of whoever is lucky enough to carve the fisi's awkward shape.
