THE BROWN HY.^NA 39 



when Gordon Gumming hunted giraffe on the site of 

 Mafeking. Unfortunately, the brown hyaena made 

 itself such a nuisance to the farmers by attacking 

 their flocks and herds that it has been almost 

 exterminated in Cape Colony ; like the Antarctic 

 wolf and the thylacine, it has been crowded out with 

 advancing civilisation. Brave when there is no 

 danger, cowardly in time of peril, pitilessly ferocious 

 to living things weaker than itself, the strandwolf 

 may well be styled the bully of the bushveldt ; and 

 its final exit will probably be contemplated without 

 tears by those most concerned in affecting it. 



The early career of the brown hyaena, like that of 

 many historical personages, appears to have been 

 free from blame perhaps from lack of opportunity. 

 Remarkable in its preference for the seashore, it 

 appears to have originally fed on Crustacea (much 

 like the crab-eating thylacine) occasionally feeding 

 on offal, such as the carcases of whales or seals. In 

 1652 the Dutch settlers landed at the Cape; with 

 advancing civilisation stockfarms were established; 

 the strandwolf and its spotted cousin promptly called 

 on the new arrivals, and soon acquired a taste for 

 mutton. In the daytime the hyaenas lay hidden in 

 the mountains or amongst the thick bush of the sand 

 veldt; but at night their dismal howls could be heard 

 rising in hideous cadence among the kloofs and 

 poortes of the hills. Remarkably daring, they 

 became a serious source of loss to the farmers; 



