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What exactly is a hyena? Does it have to do with the cat or the dog? Is it a cat or a dog or something completely different? The answer to that question is somewhat complicated. The hyena can be described as a “feline” animal, but it is truly a unique creature in its own right. Its anatomy, its vocalizations, and its highly social and structured “society” are shared by a few other creatures on the planet. Yet there are still many misconceptions about them. They are not wild dogs, and they are certainly not simple scavengers that rob graves and steal livestock.
Let’s start with the basics: the hyena is a separate family within the order of Carnivora. This family contains four extant species. The spotted hyena, the brown hyena, and the aardwolf are all native to sub-Saharan Africa. The striped hyena is endemic to North Africa, the Middle East and the Indian subcontinent. None of them are exactly endangered, but the striped hyena and the brown hyena are both threatened by habitat loss and hunting. Many more extinct species are known from the fossil record, which dates back millions of years.
All four species share some quirks, but the spotted hyena is arguably the strangest of them all. It has undergone significant change over the past millions of years to distinguish it from other closely related animals. This article covers some of these fascinating facts about how the hyena compares to both cats and dogs in terms of anatomy and behavior.
Is the hyena a dog or a cat?
We already mentioned that the hyena is a “cat-like” animal, but what exactly does this mean? It essentially means that the hyena is not a real cat like the Tiger, leopard, and domestic cat, all of which belong to the Felidae family. Instead, the hyena belongs to a separate group that is more closely related to the cat branch than the dog branch.
To understand why it is also important to understand a few basic facts about the hyena evolutionary history. The order Carnivora to which the hyena belongs began to appear about 50 to 60 million years ago. These early carnivores developed specialized teeth for ripping and tearing flesh. Based at least on a partial reconstruction of the fossil record, we know that some of them may have resembled a modern weasel and were adapted for tree climbing.
The early carnivores split very quickly into separate dog and cat lines. Both branches went their separate ways, producing new and new forms. Then, about 30 million years ago, the cat line split again into two large groups. One branch gave rise to the modern cat family. The other branch gave rise to hyenas, mongooses, and viverrids (such as the Asian Palm Civet and the binturong). About 10 to 20 million years ago, the hyena lineage really began to take shape as a unique and distinctive group. It branches into at least three separate families, only one of which (the true hyenas) clearly survives today. The changing environmental conditions over the past 10 million years eventually began to favor larger and more robust hyenas. They survived and thrived above the smaller, lightly built but endangered hyenas.
Although they last shared a common ancestor about 30 million years ago, felines, hyenas, mongooses and viverrids all fall under a single category that taxonomists now call the Feliformia. This category, which is derived from a Latin term meaning an animal with a feline shape or appearance, is simply a description of their evolutionary relationship. It is not a description of what they are. The hyena is no more a cat than the cat is a hyena.
How do hyenas resemble felines?
The evolutionary relationship between hyenas and cats may not be clear at first because they look so different. But there are actually a few traits they have in common. A feature shared by almost all members of Feliformia (the feline carnivores) is the unique skeletal structure of the middle and inner ear. It’s a very minor difference (just a matter of one or two bones), but its presence in nearly all Feliformia suggests it probably evolved early in lineage and then passed on to all descending species.
Another similarity between hyenas and felines is the very rough tongue, which is composed of equally sharp spines or bristles to remove the flesh of the prey and also aid in grooming. You may be amused to discover that the hyena tongues itself in much the same way as a cat does: sitting on its back, legs spread and feet pointed upwards.
However, in addition to a few other obvious similarities, hyenas and cats are very different animals. After all, 30 million years have passed since they last shared a common ancestor. This is more than enough time for hyenas to have evolved into something completely different. For example, thirty million years is longer than the length of time that separates humans from most apes and monkeys. So despite being members of Feliformia, hyenas are actually not very feline at all.
How do hyenas differ from cats?
In fact, hyenas differ from cats in many different ways. One of the main differences is the pack-like nature of their hunting strategy. While some species prefer to forage for leftover food, hyenas are also talented and diligent predators. Unlike cats, they are generally incapable of climbing trees or ambushing prey, preferring to chase them across the ground and tear them apart with their teeth rather than their claws (which aren’t anyway). be retractable). These teeth actually bear more than a passing resemblance to canines. This is probably because the teeth are very useful tools for the hyena’s pack-like hunting strategy.
The hunting strategy is also a reflection of the social structure. The basis of the hyena society is the clan, which can consist of 80 members at a time, and sometimes even more. But even though hyenas work together to take down prey, life within the clan isn’t exactly a cooperative affair. There is fierce competition, both between clans and within clans. The hyenas form very strict dominant hierarchies that control access to both food and sex. Lower-ranked clan members can feast on the last food. If there is any left, they will hide it in their watering holes for future meals so that nothing is wasted.
The striped hyena, the brown hyena, and the aardwolf have all adapted to generally male-led societies. It is the males who lead the clan and deter
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ne access to food and mates. Hyena females, however, have some interesting traits. They have developed male genitalia and other characteristics. It’s not entirely clear why they would have developed this, but it could be that the females are generally exposed to higher levels of testosterone, giving them masculine characteristics, or it could be a by-product of their highly aggressive and competitive social structure (females have to compete with males from the beginning of life).
Whatever the facts, the spotted hyena is taking this to the extreme. The societies are built around a matriarchal organization in which a single alpha female represents the core of the clan. She has preferential access to food and sex over the other females, who in turn have their own dominance rankings. Males are generally ranked lower than females within the clan hierarchy. They have to wait for the females’ turn to feed on the carcass before eating as well. The female anatomy is also completely different from that of dogs or cats (or perhaps mammals in general). Their bodies are 10% larger than males and have even more masculine external genitalia. As you might imagine, birth is a particularly arduous process and has put the lives of many mothers at risk.
In summation
To sum up everything in this article, we can safely say that hyenas are more closely related to cats than to dogs. However, this relationship is rather distant and distant. They last shared a common ancestor with felines about 30 million years ago. This has given hyenas plenty of time to develop and evolve their own unique characteristics and traits, some of which are shared by a few other animals on the planet.
Next one: Baby Whales: 5 Photos and 5 Facts
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