Male hyenas, which are usually smaller and less aggressive than females, often leave the clan when they are about two years of age. Females are the dominating members, followed in rank by cubs, while adult males rank lowest. Cubs often learn this social system before they begin to walk.

A complicated social hierarchy governs the clan. One indication of hyena intelligence is that hyenas will move their kills closer to each other to protect them from scavengers another indication is their strategic hunting methods.ДЄ group of spotted hyenas (called a 'clan') can include 5-90 members and is led by a single alpha female. Hyenas are also highly intelligent predators, even more intelligent than the lions (some scientists claim they are of equal intelligence to certain apes). The Aardwolf usually eat insects like termites. Only four species survive: the Spotted, Brown, and Striped Hyenas (which together make up the subfamily Hyaeninae), and the Aardwolf, which is the only member of the subfamily Protelinae.Дespite common belief, only some species belonging to this family are scavengers: while the brown and the striped hyena derive most of their diets from scavenging, the spotted hyena is not only a real predator, but also the most effective predator on the African savannah. In ancient times, large hyenas ranged over much of Europe and Asia, but they are much reduced in range and diversity today. Aardwolves have a warm, sand-colored coat, while the coats of Spotted Hyenas can range from dark-brown fur to amber and reddish in color. The pelt can be light to dark-brown on Brown Hyenas, while the color can be gray, sometimes nearly white on Striped Hyenas. An adult hyena weighs between 25 and 55 kg (55 - 120 lb). Hyenas range in length from 1.2 - 1.5 meters (3.9 - 4.9 ft) including the tail, which is 30 cm (12 inches) in length.

The hyena has one of the strongest jaws in the animal kingdom and an adult of the species has only the large cats of the family Felidae (Lions, Tigers, Jaguars, etc.) to fear. They are members of the family Hyaenidae.ДЄlthough hyenas look like rather large wild dogs, they make up a separate biological family which is most closely related to Herpestidae (the family of mongooses and meerkats). Hyenas are moderately large terrestrial carnivores native to Africa and Asia.

Are hyenas scavengers