Even if you are a well -trained scientist, you sometimes see something that you leave out of breath. For a team of ecology researchers, the observation of February 2024 has given them a spotted hyena in southeastern Egypt to comb through the history books.
The great carnivore had not been seen in the region for the past thousands of years. The event was documented in an article in Mammalia, a bi -monthly publication devoted to the analysis of the diversity of mammals.
The observation happened only 30 kilometers, or 19 miles, from the border of Sudan-but more than 300 miles from the well-known habitat range of the Hyena.
Unfortunately, the Spotted Hyena was traced and killed by a group of locals who were worried about the presence of the animal. The Spotted Hyena reportedly killed two goats in Wadi Yahmib, which is located in the protected area of Elba. According to the locals, each of the goat attacks took place at night.
After he was killed, the spotted hyena was admitted and photographed. The carcass remained behind for scavengers to eat.
According to Abdullah Nagy of Al-Azhar University in Cairo, main author of the article, the observation originally left him skeptical. “My first reaction was unbelief until I checked the photos and videos of the remains,” said Nagy. “When I saw the evidence, I was completely stunned. It was further than everything we had expected to find in Egypt.”
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As soon as the shock was finished, the team of researchers started to determine why the spotted hyena had dared so far from its normal habitat. They theoretized that a particularly rainy weather cycle that promoted plant growth in a typical dry region could have been the cause. This increase in vegetation may have encouraged the spotted hyena to make a journey to stem that feeds on the vegetation.
The research team also speculated that the rise of the spotted hyena in southeastern Egypt could disturb the balance of the food chain. If there were more spotted hyenas pull there, they would probably be the Apex predators who can destroy the cattle. This would cause undisted financial damage to the local economy.
Despite this threat, the research team believes that human interaction will be sufficient to prevent the spotted hyenas from setting up.
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