Spotted hyaena clans defend their territories with vocal displays and scent marking and use communal latrines to mark territory boundaries.
Spotted hyaena territory size is extremely variable ranging from as small as 40 square kilometeres in the Ngorongoro crater to 1000 square kilometers in the Kalahari.
Spotted hyaena clans defend group territories using vocal displays and scent marking. Scent marks are deposited from a secretion of the anal gland and from a secretion of glands on the feet. In addition, spotted hyaenas use communal latrines which also serve to mark territory boundaries. Chemical communication occurs because of the use of common latrine areas, as well as in scent marking.
• Image | © Tambako The Jaguar, All Rights Reserved
• Sources | (Hofer & East, 1995; Law, 2004)
