Hobbies And Interests
Habitat and Distribution
Brown hyenas can live in areas where the rainfall is no more than 100 mm per year. While they can survive on very small amounts of water, they also derive some fluid from the carcasses they scavenge and from fruit. One of the staples of hyenas in semiarid areas are various types of melon, which supplement the animal's water intake. Their predilection for melons sometimes brings them into conflict with farmers, who sometimes kill brown hyenas despite their protected status in some countries. Brown hyenas are distributed all over southern Africa, and particularly in Angola, Namibia, South Africa, Botswana, Lesotho, Mozambique, Malawi, Swaziland, and Zimbabwe.
Ranges
Brown hyenas have ranges that vary in size with environmental conditions. They can extend their ranges if necessary to find more food. Most brown hyenas live in small clans of five to 10 individuals, with a single alpha male and female and several subordinate females, cubs and subadults. Clans mark their ranges by scent and latrine sites. Ranges can vary from an average of 300 km up to 480 km.
Scavengers
The hyenas scavenge alone, and will cover as much as 40 km in one night on foraging run. Moving about during the cooler hours is easier on the animal and allows them to scavenge after nocturnal hunters. While scavenging is the hyena's primary mode of getting food, they will hunt seal pups when they're available on the Skeleton Coast. They'll also eat insects, eggs, lizards, rodents and birds.
Communal Living
The alpha male of the clan, as well as nomadic males, can mate with the clan's females. Males normally protect and help feed their mates while they're pregnant and suckling cubs. When the cubs are born, other nursing females in the clan may help suckle them. Cubs are protective of their younger clan mates. When danger approaches, younger cubs will be hustled into the den for protection, while older cubs will station themselves at the den's entrance to help protect the babies. Clan members will bring food for the cubs until they can forage on their own.
Communication
Brown hyenas communicate through growls, snarls, whimpers, whining, and snaps, as well as a distinctive guttural braying sound. This sound is quite different from the spotted hyena's high-pitched laugh. They also use body language. The pitch of the ears, raking, grinning and erection of the manes, known as piloerection, all play their parts in communication between clan members. Scent marking also lets other brown hyenas know about breeding status, diet, sex, and the general health of the clan's individuals.
Lifespan
Approximately 86 percent of pups reach 15 months of age and subadult status, which is a striking success rate for young animals in a hostile climate. The young are normally capable of self-sufficiency in 15 to 30 months, but tend to stay near clans to take advantage of the community food supply. Sexual maturity occurs at 24 months for females and 40 months for males. Males normally leave clans then to either go it alone or to start a new clan. Brown hyenas have a relatively low mortality rate when compared with other carnivores. Those that survive into old age live about 10 to 12 years. Most of their deaths from age are from starvation due to tooth wear.