Spotted hyena (Crocuta crocuta) coexisting at high density with people in Wukro district, northern Ethiopia

Abstract

a b s t r a c tWe surveyed density and abundance of spotted hyena (Crocuta crocuta) in the highly degraded and prey depleted Wukro district, northern Ethiopia, with a human population density of 98 persons per square kilometer. A total of 117 spotted hyenas responded to callups, giving a hyena density of 52 hyenas per 100 km 2 or a total population of 535 hyenas in the district. We quantified the economic impact of spotted hyena predation on livestock using semi structured interviews with randomly selected households. Respondents indicated a total loss of 203 domestic animals to hyena depredation over the past five years. Average annual depredation per household was 0.13 livestock worth US$ 6.1. The diet of spotted hyenas was assessed in three sub-districts by scat analysis and showed 99% prey items of domestic origin, only three of 211 scat contained hair of Ethiopian hare (Lepus fagani) and porcupine (Hystrix cristata). We conclude that hyenas in northern Ethiopia live at high density and eat almost exclusively anthropogenic food and are not dependent on conservation areas.

Large carnivore attacks on hominins during the Pleistocene: a forensic approach with a Neanderthal example

“…In Africa, hyenas coexist with humans at a high density in some countries (Yirga et al 2012), and this situation may lead to dangerous encounters. In situations of hunger, hyenas can attack humans, perceiving small children and the elderly as vulnerable and easier prey (Brain 1981;Gade 2006).…”

“…In situations of hunger, hyenas can attack humans, perceiving small children and the elderly as vulnerable and easier prey (Brain 1981;Gade 2006). Nevertheless, although predatory attacks on people occur, hyenas much more commonly feed on humans by scavenging human tombs in cemeteries (Horwitz and Smith 1988;Yirga et al 2012).…”

Status of Lion (<i>Panthera leo</i>) and Spotted Hyena (<i>Crocuta crocuta</i>) in Nechisar National Park, Ethiopia

“…They are widely distributed in Africa, with more continuous distributions over large areas of Ethiopia, Kenya, Tanzania, Botswana, Namibia, and South Africa (Honer et al, 2008). They are more abundant in human-dominated landscapes in northern Ethiopia (Yirga et al, 2013). The density and population size of lions and hyenas is not known in Nechisar National Park.…”

Densities of spotted hyaena (Crocuta crocuta) and African golden wolf (Canis anthus) increase with increasing anthropogenic influence

“…In protected areas, carnivore density is strongly related to the available natural prey biomass (Karanth et al 2004;Khorozyan et al 2008) while in human-dominated landscapes carnivore density depends on the available anthropogenic resources (Gehrt et al 2010;Luis Llanez 2012;Yirga et al 2013). When these anthropogenic food resources are abundant and human persecution is low, large carnivores can reach densities even greater than their densities in the wild (Athreya 2012).…”