tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11167350.post111685690603567249..comments2023-10-31T05:37:45.410-07:00Comments on Hungry Hyaena: Crocuta crocuta: Part 2Hungry Hyaenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06354349850246750046noreply@blogger.comBlogger7125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11167350.post-1117527614086661162005-05-31T01:20:00.000-07:002005-05-31T01:20:00.000-07:00Thank you for your two part essays on the hyena. L...Thank you for your two part essays on the hyena. Like you I first fell for the spotted hyena,impressed by their complex social structure and the near constant animosity between lions and spotted hyenas (especially that both species will kill but not eat each other). This love was reinforced when I spent time with Mara, Seattle's Woodland Park Zoo's hyena. Her power and intensity was overwhelming.<BR/><BR/>Lately, most of my time has been spent with the striped hyena and I'd like to speak up for these little known members of the hyaenidae family. Smaller and shaggier, with huge bat-like ears, the striped hyena doesn't come charging up like the spotted. They hang back, watching and accessing and once they are comfortable, they will come over for a closer look. There is a quiet intellegence to them that is more dog-like than the spotted hyena - a gentleness that has been seen between family members that is lacking in spotted hyena society.<BR/><BR/>Yet they are still hyenas, capable protecting carcasses from leopards and occasionally tigers and with the same bone chilling laughing howl. I'd never heard anything as loud and frightening as the maniacal screaming, howling laughing voice of a striped hyena.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11167350.post-1117132028280096582005-05-26T11:27:00.000-07:002005-05-26T11:27:00.000-07:00I saw a special on one of those discovery channels...I saw a special on one of those discovery channels years ago called "Hyaneas: Nature's Gangsters". It was intense watching them hunt. I think they are awesome. And I'm jealous they have the strongest jaws in the world.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11167350.post-1117058065761406612005-05-25T14:54:00.000-07:002005-05-25T14:54:00.000-07:00Yo Reiger,You should tell folks about elegant body...Yo Reiger,<BR/>You should tell folks about elegant body design of the Hyena. Correct me if i'm wrong, but the high shoulder/ low hip combo coupled with massive jaws allow them to bite, hold, and dig in. Like an anchor with teeth, they immobilize larger prey until another Hyena can get a hold... until the prey is brought down.<BR/>That's what I learned anyways.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11167350.post-1116945394403688672005-05-24T07:36:00.000-07:002005-05-24T07:36:00.000-07:00Chris:Actually the bizarre genital morphology of t...Chris:<BR/><BR/>Actually the bizarre genital morphology of the spotted hyaena is not unique, though it is the most extreme example biologists have found to date. Other examples I have read of include the elongated clitoris of both the female spider monkey (<I>Ateles</I> sp.) and European mole (<I>Talpa europaea</I>), but perhaps the most curious parallel will turn out to be the foosa (<I>Cryptoprocta ferox</I>), a distant relative of the hyaena and fierce predator that lives only on Madagascar. Unfortunately, it appears that foosa morphology changes with age. What often begins as a large clitoris becomes one of "normal" size by adulthood. Given their relative genetic similarity, I think more work could be done in this department.<BR/><BR/>More importantly, none of these other mammals use the clitoris in the same way. It certainly doesn't function as the birthing canal and it is rarely used, if ever, to showcase dominance or submission. Female spotted hyaenas use their clitoris as a sexual signalling device in much the same way male humans use their penis (at least in evolutionary terms; only a few friends still take out their wares at a cocktail party these days). (I agree with Jared Diamond's argument that, while a large penis may impress some ladies, our male sexual organs are principally meant for viewing by other men, testaments to our virility and strength. When a New Guinea man carves a penis gourd, he usually takes care to make it quite long and impressive. The poor soul who makes his to size, no matter how well-endowed he may be, is likely to be derided cruelly.)<BR/><BR/>As for the selective pressures which led to this morphology, most biolgists are stumped. Spotted hyaena researchers do surmise that the demand for aggression - such behavior earns more food and power - led to increased masculinization of the females, but this "solution" is really of little merit. If this were true, why do not all pack-living predators have dominant females and similar genitals? The morphology probably dates back to early hyaenas of the <I>Crocuta</I> genus, though I have not read of any fossils which prove as much.<BR/><BR/>So, the short answer is no one knows. Pretty crazy, huh?Hungry Hyaenahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06354349850246750046noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11167350.post-1116918985238214812005-05-24T00:16:00.000-07:002005-05-24T00:16:00.000-07:00I'm curious if there is any theory as to what sort...I'm curious if there is any theory as to what sort of selective pressure might have led to the hyaena's unique (?) morphology and sexual dimorphism. Perhaps this is already known, but if not I assume that theories have been floated.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11167350.post-1116902953471400612005-05-23T19:49:00.000-07:002005-05-23T19:49:00.000-07:00Great essay. I enjoyed the way you weaved science...Great essay. I enjoyed the way you weaved science and literature together. I had never given much consideration to hyenas one way or another. Thanks for opening my eyes.Lené Garyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10018280698586741856noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11167350.post-1116898488878297412005-05-23T18:34:00.000-07:002005-05-23T18:34:00.000-07:00Thanks for bringing me up to speed HH. Excellent ...Thanks for bringing me up to speed HH. Excellent post. The hyaena "birthing experience" is news and painful to think about. A whole new meaning to ouch! Like their life isn't tough enough. And can you imagine the stress level of low-ranking newly immigrant young males.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com