Perception Channels: tactile ; chemical
It seems to be rather compatible with human populations, and its habitat is readily available and not in danger of disappearing.
IUCN Red List of Threatened Species: near threatened
There are not many negative benefits. They rarely attack livestock or people and are unaggressive, often allowing dogs to attack them without attempting to defend themselves.
The striped hyena has some benefit in that it consumes unwanted human refuse. In some instances, villages in Africa leave their garbage outside at night for the striped hyenas to feed on. It is not hunted for food purposes nor for its pelt.
The striped hyena is predominantly a scavenger; its diet consisting mainly of carrion and human refuse. It scavenges large and medium-sized mammals, such as zebras, wildebeests, gazelles, and impalas, even eating bones from carcasses if the meat has been picked off. It supplements its diet with fruit, insects, and occasionally by killing small animals like hare, rodents, reptiles, and birds. The striped hyena forages principally at night, individually travelling throughout its home range searching for food in no apparent pattern. Travelling speeds average 2-4 km/h, occasionally increasing to 8 km/h when trotting. Wind direction is not used to determine direction of travel, but the striped hyena will respond quickly to the scent of carrion brought by the wind. It also visits established food sites, such as garbage dumps around human settlements, fruit trees, and temporary sites of large kills. Water is consumed every night if it is available, but the striped hyena can survive without water for long periods and live under desert conditions.
Northern and Eastern Africa, the Middle East, India, and Asia extending north to the Caucasus and southern Siberia.
Biogeographic Regions: palearctic (Native ); oriental (Native ); ethiopian (Native )
The striped hyena lives in arid, mountainous regions with scrub woodland. It dens in rocky hills, ravines, and crevices. It also inhabits open savannah areas with dense grassland in some regions. In Africa, it is outcompeted by the spotted hyena in open areas and is thus relegated to other habitats.
Terrestrial Biomes: savanna or grassland ; scrub forest
Average lifespan
Status: captivity: 24.0 years.
Average lifespan
Status: captivity: 24.0 years.
Height: 65-80 cm The average length of the striped hyena from head to tail is one meter. Males and females do not differ in average height or length, but males do tend to be slightly heavier. They are a long-haired hyena with large, pointed ears. The striped hyena can erect the long hair on its mane and appear 38% bigger, which it does when it feels threatened. They are gray to straw-colored with a black muzzle and black stripes on their head, torso, and legs.
Range mass: 25 to 45 kg.
Other Physical Features: endothermic ; bilateral symmetry
Average basal metabolic rate: 31.954 W.
Breeding is nonseasonal, beginning at two to three years. One to six cubs are born per litter, after a 88-92 day gestation. No detailed studies of sexual behavior in the striped hyena have been published. Based on observations in captivity, estrus lasts one day, with the female mating several times at 15-25 minute intervals throughout the day. The mother brings food to the den for her cubs after they are one month old, but continues to nurse for approximately 12 months.
Key Reproductive Features: gonochoric/gonochoristic/dioecious (sexes separate); sexual
Average birth mass: 700 g.
Average gestation period: 90 days.
Average number of offspring: 2.5.
Average age at sexual or reproductive maturity (male)
Sex: male: 800 days.
Average age at sexual or reproductive maturity (female)
Sex: female: 800 days.
