NATURAL HISTORY OF SOUTH AFRICA 



hood of the slaughterhouses. So destructive did 

 it prove to the settlers' flocks and herds, that every 

 possible effort was made to destroy it ; and in those 

 early days v^hen poisons of a suitable nature v^^ere 

 so scarce, and the firearms so crude, it was no easy 

 matter. 



With the exception of a few specimens in the wild 

 bushy localities in the northern districts of the Cape 

 Province, this hyaena is extinct south of the Orange 

 River. In the unfrequented bush-covered parts 

 of upper Natal a few of these animals are stated to 

 still survive ; and in the dense tree-covered districts 

 of Zululand it still exists, becoming more plentiful 

 in the eastern part of the Transvaal, Portuguese 

 Territory, and on upwards as far as the Sahara. 



When primitive ape-like man ceased to lead an 

 arboreal life, and arming himself with clubs and 

 roughly-chipped stone axes, he ventured forth to 

 secure a more abundant food supply, which the 

 ground afforded in the shape of roots, bulbs, seeds, 

 and small living creatures, he found himself beset 

 by many enemies. He sought out caves in which 

 to take shelter, and finding them already inhabited 

 by Spotted Hyaenas, otherwise known as Cave 

 Hyaenas, he gave them battle, and slaying or 

 driving them forth, he established himself in 

 their lairs. 



It was formerly considered that the Cave Hyaena 

 was a different species to the Spotted Hyaena of 

 to-day, but naturalists are now agreed that the two 



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