4/30/2023 0 Comments Are hyenas scavengersDreaming of hyenas may symbolize that something in your waking life may have triggered your competitive nature, and left you feeling aggressive and out of control. Hyenas seem far less intimidated by lionesses than by lions, and are occasionally bold enough to try to bully lionesses off a kill if there are no males around. Hyenas are scavengers, and they can be very aggressive when competing for food. Ironically, while people assume that hyenas always try to steal food from lions, it’s really lions that are far more likely to scavenge food killed by spotted hyenas. Spotted hyenas rarely scavenge their food, and in fact they kill most of their own food. Each will attack and kill the other's cubs, or elderly or sick individuals. The spotted hyena is the most famous hyena species, and most people assume that it’s a scavenger. ![]() There is no love lost between lions and hyenas. When they hunt alone, they go for smaller animals such as baboons, guinea fowls, ostriches, snakes and tortoises. In packs, hyenas go for big game - wildebeest, zebra and kudu and, very occasionally, buffalo. Their prey usually succumbs to exhaustion and is pulled down and disembowelled by the pack. Hyenas are capable of short charges of up to 50km/h and can maintain a steady, fast pace in pursuing prey over several kilometres. The territory itself is not vigorously defended, but hyena clans will respond aggressively to other predators moving into their area. Their territories vary in size depending on the amount of prey in the vicinity as well as the number of competing clans. They are territorial, marking their hunting ground through communal defecation. Social structures can be quite loose, however, with clan members shifting allegiances, breaking up and reforming. Hyenas are mostly social, living in clans of between 10 and 40 animals, led by a dominant female. ![]() Hyaenas are designed for the long haul and, as Kruger mammal expert Heike Schutze says, "they are high-stamina hunters relentless in the pursuit of their prey once they have tasted blood". They have an almost uncanny ability to seek out the most vulnerable animal in a herd and isolate it from the others. As a group, hyenas are well able to drive lions off a kill if they outnumber the lions. Although hyenas sometimes hunt alone, they mostly hunt in packs. Yes, hyenas are carnivores and scavengers.
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