Baby hyenas are Africa’s little yet ferocious cubs.

Baby hyenas are Africa’s little yet ferocious cubs.

The hyena (or “hyaena” in various areas of the world) is the most frequent big carnivore in Africa.

Spotted Hyenas are fierce, social, and highly clever creatures. Their cubs, on the other hand, are adorable.

In Africa, hyenas have a bad reputation, and their presence in The Lion King didn’t help matters. Do not, however, be misled by The Lion King’s fearsome beasts. From biology to social organization, spotted hyenas are complex creatures unlike any other on the earth.

Hyenas are born in a den underground. They are born prepared to battle. Females often have two or three cubs at a time.

Fighting between cubs is typical, especially if they are of the same sex, and the weaker sibling will frequently die in the early weeks.

Baby hyenas require this grit to live in the group and thrive on the African savannah.

Hyenas have a gestation period of 110 days. Cubs are born as fully formed babies. Hyena cubs are born with black, scruffy hair and small fangs that have broken through their gums. When babies are born, their eyes are open.

With babies weighing roughly 500 grams at birth, the mother hyena frequently keeps them separated from the rest of the clan for the first several days.

The black coat begins to lighten and spots emerge at 3 weeks of age. The babies get more active and engage with their siblings. When the mother leaves her tribe to hunt, she will leave them with male “babysitters.”

Girls will stay with the tribe for the rest of their life, however, young males will leave around the age of two.