Guess who has nothing to talk about again!!! This guy!!!! Were gonna talk about aard wolves and brown hyenas
Aardwolves, also known as termite hyenas, are the smallest of the hyena family. Its also the most physiologically the closest to extinct Hyaenidae species. Unlike spotted hyenas they live in mostly solitude much like stripped hyenas, though they don’t form long term bonds with mates, only coming together during the mating season. They’re much less aggressive than the other hyenas, when predators approach their territory they usually chase them out rather than attacking. Unlike the carnivorous cousins, Aardwolves are insectivores, which is where they get the name termite hyenas.
For a long time there was a debate if Aardwolves could be considered hyenas because of their differences to the other for surviving species, so much so that it was its own species for a while. Scientist felt they could be mimicking stripped hyenas due to convergent evolution, much like spotted hyenas and African wild dogs. Originally, they were categorized as Protelidae, which at the time did not include hyenas, but after some type they were classified as the Protelidae subfamily, being the only surviving species.
Physiologically, they bare much resemblance to striped hyenas. They have a spinal mane with similar stripes, but they are much smaller with thinner fur. Another thing to note is the fact they have brown markings rather than the stripped hyenas black and gray markings.
Fun little guys more people need to talk about them
Brown hyenas
These are the rarest hyenas in the family, being the only species in the Parahyaena family. They’re almost a threatened species with there being anywhere between 5k and 10k brown hyenas alive as of now. Similar to spotted hyenas, they do maintain a social hierarchy in clans, though it doesn’t seem to be as complicated as spotted hyenas, and it isn’t matriarchically. They’re scavengers that each just about anything, and will steal prey from other animals. If they hunt themselves, its usually small prey or insects.
They’re legally protected under the near threatened conservation status, so its illegal to kill them. Farmers have made wrongful assumptions that they will kill livestock though the prey is to large for them, and this has severely impacted their numbers.
Physiologically, they bare almost no resemblance to the other family members. They have a long, dark brown coat that is shaggy with no distinct spinal mane. Their ears are pointed but not shaped like striped hyenas, and they have a short tail.
I heart info dumping when I forget to write something meaningful for a blog. have a good day guys!!!
genuinely the first time i’ve seen another person talk about aardwolves in the wild like this i feel blessed 🙂
BOTH OF THESE HYENA CRITTERS LOOK SO CUTE 🙁 I find it interesting that one of them solely eats insects, I wonder if they have a preference for ants or butterflies. Thank you for two more animals added to my “Would own as a pet if I could” list
fun fact guys between those two options they prefer ants, but termites up a majority of their diet (which is why they’re called termite hyenas). they really only eat surface level ground welling bugs so most that can fly are off the menu.