The spotted hyena is one of Africa's major predators. An accomplished pack hunter, it rivals the lion and the Cape hunting dog as the premier terrestrial big game hunter of the continent. Spotted hyenas can be found throught sub-Saharan Africa. In prehistoric times, they also roamed throughout Eurasia. They inhabit grasslands and savannas. They have a yellowish fur which may be covered in black spots.
Spotted hyenas are highly social, living in large clans of 10 to 80 individuals. The clans are matriarchal and matrilineal - females are both dominant and remain in the clan at adulthood, while males leave the clan at sexual maturity to join another clan. The females are orginized my matrilines, or families, which are neoptistic in that the female offspring of the high ranking matrilines are themselves high ranking. The clan is based around a communal den, which protects the cubs from other predators when the adults are not around. Spotted hyena society is as complex as that of any non-human primate, and spotted hyenas are often considered to be exceptionally intelligent for a carnivoran.
Spotted hyenas are often called laughing hyenas because of the giggling sound they make when threatened. These hyenas also often make whooping calls, grunts, and groans to each other.
Female spotted hyenas are larger and more agressive than the males. The females have an enlarged clittoris that resembles a penis, causing many observers to mistake these hyenas for hermaphrodites.
Spotted hyenas hunt in small groups against large game, and alone when targeting smaller game. They chase down their prey and rip it to pieces with their powerful jaws, often eating it alive. When group hunting against large prey, they typically target foals or injured, sick, or elderly animals. Spotted hyenas opportunistically eat carrion when they can find it, even if it means driving some other predator away from its kill. The powerful bone-cracking jaws of hyenas allow them to devour almost all parts of a carcass. Groups of hyenas may appear to squabble over a carcass, but they mostly compete for food by trying to eat faster than their clan-mates.
Spotted hyenas have been known to attack humans. In the day they are generally shy and flighty, but at night they become considerably bolder. Many attacks were on people who were sleeping outside - often the hyena would attack the face, leaving disfiguring wounds. In one report, the hyenas would wait outside people's doors at night, and attack when they stepped outside in the morning. Those spotted hyenas that attack people tend to be unusually large specimens. While attacks on live humans are not particularly common, hyenas are notorious grave robbers - to them a human corpse is just another animal to scavenge. Spotted hyenas also not uncommonly attack livestock, although it is not always clear if the hyenas killed the livestock or if they just found it dead and began to scavenge it.