The Hyaenas and Aard-wolf 



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Photo by A. S. liudland <L- Sons. 



SPOTTED HY^INA. 



The largest of the carrion-feeding animals. A South African 

 species. 



The hyaenas are carnivorous animals, with the 

 front limbs longer than the hind. The tail is 

 short, the colour spotted or brindled, the teeth 

 and jaws of great strength. 



The BROWN HYAENA, or STRAND-WOLF, is an 

 African species, with very long, coarse hair, reaching 

 a length of 10 inches on the back. It is not 

 found north of the Zambesi ; and it is nocturnal, 

 and fond of wandering along the shore, where 

 it picks up crabs and dead fish. Young cattle, 

 sheep, and lambs are also killed by it, and offal 

 of all kinds devoured. 



The SPOTTED HYAENA is a large and massive' 

 animal, the head and body being 4 feet 6 inches 

 long without the tail. It is found all over Africa 

 from Abyssinia and Senegal southwards. A few 

 are left in Natal. It is believed to be the same 

 as the cave-hyaena of Europe. By day it lives 

 much in the holes of the aard-vark (ant-bear) ; by 

 night it goes out, sometimes in small bands, to 

 seek food. It has a loud and mournful howl, 

 beginning low and ending high. It also utters a 



horrible maniacal laugh when excited, which gives it the name of Laughing-hyaena. "Its 



appetite," says Mr. W. L. Sclater in his " South African Mammals," " is boundless. It is 



entirely carnivorous, but seems to prefer putrid and decaying matter, and never kills an 



animal unless driven to do so by hunger. Sheep and donkeys are generally attacked at the 



belly, and the bowels torn out by its sharp teeth. Horses are also frequent objects of attack ; 



but in this case shackling is useful, as the horse, unable to escape, faces the hyaena, which 



instantly bolts. It is an excellent scavenger, and it has been known to kill and carry off young 



children, though the least attempt at pursuit will cause it to drop them. Many stories 



are told, too, of its attacking sleeping natives ; in this case it invariably goes for the man's 



face. Drummond states that 



he has seen many men who 



had been thus mutilated, 



wanting noses, or with the 



whole mouth and lips torn 



away. This is confirmed by 



other authors." Drummond 



gives an instance of seven 



cows being mortally injured 



in a single night by two 



hyaenas, which attacked them 



and bit off the udders. 



Poisoned meat is the only 



means to get rid of this 



abominable animal. 



Sir Samuel Baker says: 



" I can safely assert that the 



bone-cracking power of this 



animal is extraordinary. I 



cannot say that it exceeds the 



lion or tiger in the strength 



Photo by A. S. Mudland <fr Sons. 



The jaws of the hysena are specially made for cracking bones. They will smash the thigh-bona 



of a buffalo. 



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