What family of animals are hyenas? Introducing the hyena family

You may have seen hyenas on TV. They obviously look like dogs and are also called dogs, so why are they not in the dog family? So what family of animals are hyenas?

1. What family of animals are hyenas?

Hyenas are mammals of the hyena family, medium in size, and are terrestrial carnivorous animals. Hyenas are relatively small in size, with stripes all over their bodies, mostly solitary, and rely on their well-developed sense of smell to forage for carrion. The brown hyena is larger in size, distributed along the southwestern coast of Africa, and often goes to beaches to look for crabs, fish, and other food. The spotted hyena is found only in Africa, is larger in size, hunts in groups, and in addition to eating carrion, can hunt antelopes.

2. Morphological characteristics

The body shape resembles a dog, with a long neck, the hind limbs shorter and weaker than the forelimbs, a relatively short torso, high shoulders and low hips; there is a long mane along the dorsal midline behind the neck; the teeth are large, with sturdy conical premolars, well-developed carnassial teeth, and degenerated molars. The jaws are thick and strong, able to bite open bones. The appearance is somewhat like a dog, but the head is shorter and rounder than a dog's, and the fur is brownish yellow or brownish brown, with many irregular dark brown spots. Because its hindquarters are lower than its forequarters, its walking and running posture is not very elegant, but when it runs it is quite fast and has endurance. Their running speed can reach 50-60 kilometers per hour, and they can run very long distances without feeling tired. For the African spotted hyena, the average bite force is 460 kilograms. For comparison, the bite force of the king of Africa, the lion, is “only 360 kilograms.

Hyenas have now all been listed as protected animals, and are a kind of protected animal.