11 Times Hyena Clans Were on The Prowl to Eat And Kill Other Animals

Hyenas are regarded by most people as scavengers. But they are incredible hunters. They are ruthless savages without any scruples. Well, join us as we... 15. Hyena versus Impala. Hyenas and cheetahs have a complex relationship. While hyenas are known to scavenge from cheetah kills, they do not necessarily follow cheetahs as a regular behavior. However, hyenas may opportunistically track cheetahs in the hopes of stealing their kills. The relationship between these two species can vary depending on factors such as competition for food and territory. An impala was caught by a large southern African python, and the alarm calls by the rest of the herd attracted the attention of a nearby hyena. With the python sensing danger at the arrival of the hyena, it loosened its incredibly strong grip on the animal. And this was just moment the fortunate impala needed to make a run for safety. Even though hyenas eat their prey alive, it does not mean they are evil. They have their own reasons for doing so. Hyenas eat their prey alive because they want to eat their food before intruders, such as lions and wild dogs, come and try to steal it. Hyenas have some of the most powerful jaws of the animal kingdom. Even though they are known to be scavengers, they are highly skilled hunters, and it is not that unusual to see a hyena with a fresh kill it has made. 14. Hyenas Kill Zebra What you see in this video was one of the most unforgettable events a man and his wife witnessed while on a safari when a pack of hyenas attacked and fed on this poor and unfortunate zebra mare that was heavily pregnant and simply couldn't keep up with the herd. It was the first time the man and his guide of 15 years had ever observed such an incident. Subsequently, the unborn foal was savagely ripped out and carried off by one hyena. It was heartbreaking to watch, simply too much for one person in another vehicle who asked to leave after seeing what happened. The entire time, the mare never uttered a sound as the savagery of the clan set in, no doubt, because it was in severe shock. Hyenas can chase down prey over long distances while running at up to 37 miles per hour. Spotted hyenas often pick out the young or weak from the herd, but they can kill even healthy adult ungulates. In this case, the zebra was able to bite back at the endurance predator and eventually managed to escape. Is this a high-speed race or a high-speed chase? Sadly, the latter and proof of the tactical methods of these misunderstood carnivorous mammals, as these hyenas take their time to tire out the zebras and make the kill. Zebras have excellent eyesight. It is believed that they can see in color. Like most ungulates, the zebra has its eyes on the sides of its head, giving it a wide field of view. Zebras also have night vision, although not as advanced as that of most of their predators. When attacked by packs of hyenas or wild dogs, a zebra group will huddle together with the foals in the middle while the stallion tries to ward them off. Spotted hyenas evolved sharp carnassial behind their crushing premalars. Therefore, they did not need to wait for their prey to die. 13. Hyena vs. Hyena This hyena is being attacked by some of her own kind. In what appears to be an intraclan battle, its ear is viciously bitten to the point of hanging off and its foot is shattered. Hyenas have no mercy for their prey and will not stop attacking until they are killed. Two hyenas are seen fighting in a mud pit in this video. One of the scavengers seems injured while the other one keeps attacking it. In the animal kingdom, the spotted hyena's bite is among the strongest. Clans are tightly knit communities dominated by sass and females. Disobedient clan members are brutally attacked and expelled, while trespassers are frequently killed. Spotted hyenas are attacking a younger hyena from another clan. The two hyena clans clashed in the early hours of the morning and the western clan caught one of the younger members of the eastern clan and started to eat it head first while it was still alive. Cannibalism is not uncommon in hyena society where nothing goes to waste. 12. Hyena vs. Topi This topi is relaxing when a hyena sneaks up on it, but just when the hyena gets close, the topi reacts and tries to sprint away. The hyena manages to grab the topi and take it down and then, when the rest of the crew arrives, the topi is in dire need of help, but it doesn't come. Just more reinforcements for the enemy show up and it's all over in seconds. Hyenas on the Maasai Mara have learned how to lull topis on the savannah into a false sense of security before they pounce on them. Feeling safe is the biggest mistake the topis can make, and this one pays with his life. A hyena from Maasai Mara managed to spot a newly born topi calf in the savannah, but with the parents there with them, the hyena still did not hesitate and went in for the kill. Predators like the hyena and lions usually look out for when prey is about to give birth so that they can get an easy kill. This video is not for the faint of heart. These hyenas are using a play from the Wild Dogs playbook and don't bother killing this topi before eating it. They've decided to feast on it while it's still alive. The ordeal is gruesome and ugly, but the hyenas don't think so. They are enjoying every minute of it. The poor topi is gutted and shredded in no time. A hyena chased the topi to exhaustion and started eating it while it was still alive. The main reason they do this is to avoid having other predators, such as lions, steal their kill. As a result, they eat their prey as soon and as fast as possible. By the time the animal dies, half of its body has already been eaten. 11. Hyena vs. Hippo Only the most daring of Africa's predators will take on a fully grown hippo. With 50-centimeter teeth and thick, tire-like skin, these large herbivores are notoriously cantankerous and one of the continent's most dangerous creatures. While its friends devour him, this hyena is whispering something into this hippo's ear. It's telling the hippo they're all hungry in case he didn't realize it. Because the hippo is clearly sick, the hyena's whispers go unanswered. The baby hippo in this video is being dragged to his funeral against his will because he still hasn't advised members of his family. He screams and begs for mercy, but the hyenas don't want to hear any of it as they begin to drill holes into the calf's body to eat it. This hippo is in no shape to defend itself. It's either sick or injured and is not resisting the savage attack by these hyenas. The hippo just lays in the water waiting for the grim reaper to arrive. Meanwhile, the hyenas dig into the hippo's backside and continue to weaken it without any resistance from the massive animal. 12. Hyena vs. Lion When hyenas outnumber lions, such as is the case in our thumbnail, they can deal a lot of damage by surrounding and biting their target simultaneously, not giving it any chance to defend itself. So the long life question is asked again. Can a single male lion take on a whole hyena clan? It depends on the gender and condition of the lion. Normally, it would take three to six hyenas to be on par with one lioness and overpower her, but it would take twice that number to overpower a male lion. And that's if they got into an actual fight. Otherwise, one male lion could scare an entire clan of hyenas. A young male lion that trespassed into unknown territory was confronted by two powerful male lions, and they let him have it, killing the youngster in the process. When a lone hyena spotted the carcass, it decided to see what lion meat tasted like and seemed to enjoy it. What I like most about hyenas is that they will never abandon one of their own, even if it means fighting a male lion like the one in this video. While he holds and tries to kill a member of the clan, the other hyenas constantly harass the lion until he lets go of the hyena and it escapes. Once again, the clan comes to the rescue and saves a member of the clan by fighting and annoying a male lion. When a second male lion comes running through, the scavengers scamper off and disappear. One-on-one, hyenas are no match for lions, as you can see in this footage, but a clan of hyenas striking from all sides can do some damage. But in this video, it's a large cackle of hyenas against a few lions, and still, the scavengers are ready for the challenge. 9. Hyena Eating Elephant A roaming hyena clan stumbles across a large elephant that refuses to leave her spot. They soon discover why. She has a sick baby elephant which has collapsed on the ground. The hyenas approach, just waiting for an opportunity to separate them. The mother elephant does her best to protect her sick elephant calf from such a terrible fate, but can't do much to stop the attack. A full-grown elephant is impossible for hyenas to take on, unless it is sick or injured, but a small calf in the middle of the night is a treat for this clan. The poor calf was in the wrong place at the wrong time, and without the herd to protect him, he was doomed from the start. Even though we can see these hyenas feeding on an elephant calf carcass, it doesn't mean they killed the animal. They may have found the abandoned carcass, and since hyenas will also eat carrion, they will dig in. This hyena finds a creative way of eating what's inside this massive elephant carcass. It digs a bigger hole in the elephant's rear end and stuffs its head inside, eating whatever comes its way. Hyenas use all the tricks in the book to get a bite to eat. The hyena pulls extremely hard until it rips through the lining of the elephant's anus, discharging an explosion of decomposing gases built up in the elephant's gut. It almost looks like an alien is coming out of the elephant's rear end, and it gives the hyena the scare of its life. A clan of hyenas finds a dead elephant carcass lying at the edge of a waterhole, and they gather around it to begin tearing pieces of flesh from the carcass. One of the hyenas practically enters the elephant's body from the rear and pulls its entrails out from a hole it has dug in the elephant. This is one buffet these hyenas will remember for a long time. 8. Hyena vs. Warthog Hyenas can take down adult warthogs, but it is much easier to handle a small piglet for a lone hyena, the way the hyena in this video is doing. And even then, the little piglet, a male leopard, had captured a warthog in this gruesome scene. But when the clan arrived minutes later, the leopard released its prey and fled. The hyenas took control, and you can hear the warthog squealing in the video, indicating that things did not improve with the hyenas. Here is something you don't see very often, a lion and a hyena sharing a meal at the same table. As both animals try to get their share of a poor warthog. Both animals are so hungry, they don't mind sharing this meal with each other. At one point, they're even eating side by side, which is unheard of between these two mortal enemies. 7. Hyena vs. Wildebeest The man filming this video was watching a wildebeest mega herd run past a hyena kill, and this is when the hyena left the kill, isolated the baby wildebeest, sunk in its teeth and dragged it back to be torn apart alive. But then, the baby's mom ran back to save it and succeeded. According to the man, this was a lucky sighting he almost missed, because his guide pushed him to move closer to the hyena kill, which would have positioned him between the kill and the Had he moved, it might have prevented this attempted kill from even happening, and at the very least, prevented him from filming the action. Observing wildlife from a distance has a lot of advantages. It allows nature to do its thing, and for those patient enough, to experience encounters like this. Hyenas are unquestionably one of the world's most reviled natural predators. They are frequently portrayed as scavengers, the bullies of the African plains, laughing as they gang up to steal hard-earned meals from their more majestic competitors. But hyena are also excellent hunters. Indeed, most of the prey they consume is the result of their own hunting efforts. They will scavenge or steal prey from another carnivore if given the opportunity, but so would any other carnivore. In this thrilling video, we witness an intense and dramatic showdown between a formidable hyena and a resilient wildebeest. As the tension builds, the two adversaries engage in a battle of strength, strategy, and survival on the African savanna. A spotted hyena, along with a friend, kills and feeds on a full-grown wildebeest bull. The hyena employs the standard prey-take-down technique of immobilizing the prey by tearing into the soft areas of the groin, then beginning to feed while the animal helplessly watches. Many people despise hyenas because they believe they are merely scavengers who steal food from other animals. Many people are aware that they hunt their own prey, but they still dislike them because of their hunting technique. They lack the tools that big cats have, hence the reason for this, and they manage to feed themselves efficiently. When it comes to food, hyenas have no mercy. This hyena is ripping out this wildebeest's front leg, and I must say, it's quite difficult to watch. The wildebeest is then disemboweled and eaten alive.