The Hyscna. 205 



numerous in Portuguese East Africa, which adjoins 

 Nyasaland. 



The cry of the spotted hyaena will often be heard at 

 night, and the repertoire of the hyaena in the making of 

 weird sounds is unique. 



Hyaenas howl, shriek, cackle, clack, and laugh according 

 to the state of their stomachs, and if a dead elephant or 

 other large animal has been left out for a night, all in the 

 district seem to collect for the dinner party. 



Lately I left a bull elephant, and on coming back next 

 morning, I found that the hyaenas had eaten half the trunk. 

 I made a fence round this elephant, which took more than 

 half the day, so by nightfall I had only got out the tusks 

 and cut up part of the animal. The hyaenas that had 

 visited the carcass on the previous night came back at 

 dark with many more, and I will never forget the sounds 

 they made that night. One could hear their cries of 

 disappointment in finding the natives and myself camped 

 near, for the natives slept inside the enclosure, and I in my 

 tent, pitched about fifty yards to windward so as to escape 

 the strong stench. 



As the natives had fires and I had not, the hyaenas kept 

 roaming round the tent in a most fearless way, and, as 

 they sang their various songs quite close to my ears, I 

 could not sleep much. 



If hyaenas cared to, they might be dangerous, as they are 

 possessed of tremendous power in their jaws, and, con- 

 sidering the amount of walking they do in search of food, 

 they must be wiry and hard. Occasionally they will take 

 half the face off a native or give a human being a tearing 

 bite in the leg, but, considering their numbers, they do 

 little harm. 



I have seen the thigh-bone of a big elephant broken in 

 half by them, and this, of course, was not the result of one 

 bite, but continual gnawing and crunching. 



Any ordinary bone they will snap with a single bite, and, 

 as they feed mainly on bones left by lions and leopards, 

 their droppings are usually of a bluish-white colour. It is 



