Happy Zebra Clan Den Update (and news of a split)!

Our Happy Zebra clan’s den is located very far off-road. When we first arrived at this location, there was a secondary den system that could be found roughly 50m to the South, and this area appeared to be one of our mom’s natal dens (where she birthed her cubs). We kept an eye on this space, but eventually realized that she had cleared out after our initial sighting of her and brought her cubs to the primary communal den. The primary space is actually a network of three den holes (two of which we suspect may connect to each other underground). The area itself is optimal for visibility in a way that North and South clan’s dens are lacking – we are able to drive all the ways around the mound of the den itself, and the grass is relatively cleared out in front of the most active spaces.

 

See above for a collection of GPS points on ARGO’s collar. We circled the communal den in green, and you can see that ARGO has had quite a bit of movement throughout our Happy Zebra territory.

 

We were able to find Happy Zebra’s den thanks to ARGO (daughter of RUMG, the last known matriarch), the hyena that we collared in this territory. Based on Happy Zebra’s current clan list and dominance hierarchy, one would assume that ARGO is the matriarch of the clan, yet this doesn’t appear to be the case. This difference in what is officially listed is likely due to the fact that Happy Zebra clan has been in a period of upheaval since 2020, leading our leadership team to ultimately decide to cease studying the lower-ranking hyenas. See below for the official explanation of why (courtesy of Jana Woerner, current PhD student of Kay Holekamp):

           

Happy Zebra Clan split into two clans sometime in 2020 - there was limited sampling due to the pandemic, so the exact dates are unknown. The hyenas were using two communal dens, one that was primarily used by higher rankers and one by lower rankers, for several years. However, there was still regular movement between the two dens and most animals were seen in all parts of the territory. Since 2020, however, there has been no movement between the two groups and the lower rankers that split from the main group only hang out in the Northwestern part of the former territory. We named the new clan “Not-so-happy Zebras (NZ)” and all clan members that split off are now marked as NZ Clan hyenas in the Master Hyena List. Their new territory is located pretty far from our camp and covers a lot of unknown/difficult-to-maneuver terrain. There has also been very limited sampling effort in that area since 2021, so most of the new cubs/subs are unknown. Therefore, we have decided to officially stop studying these hyenas in August 2024.

 

Even though ARGO may not be the highest-ranking hyena, it is apparent that she is enjoying life from her constant romping and need to play. In fact, on one memorable morning, we watched ARGO jump about, seemingly ensconced in a fit of the zoomies, and throw herself backwards onto the ground in an admirable imitation of a backflip. She is definitely a team favorite here in Serena camp!

 

Notably, the space that Happy Zebra clan’s den occupies seems to be a hotspot for many other species. We have been lucky enough to see pangolins there on THREE separate occasions, which was an incredibly special set of sightings as they are notoriously elusive creatures. Additionally, one can find themselves surrounded by Oribis, Wildebeests, or Elephants when journeying on the track that we made to Happy Zebra’s den. Overall, it seems like our clan chose an excellent neighborhood for raising their large brood of cubs.

 

See below for some of the exciting outcomes of our observations of Happy Zebra clan’s communal dens over the past few months:

 

Above you can see KRKN with her two cubs GRDN (Garden City Mall) and TIO (The Junction Mall). KRKN”s lineage is shopping malls in Nairobi.

 

Above you can see MALA (Malachite King Fisher) playing with two of adult hyenas at the communal den. One of those adults is ARGO, who is currently collared. MALA is the cub of DUKY, whose lineage is “different species of water birds”.

 

Above you can see VINE (Vine), cub of BARD (whose lineage is “Social media”). We like to remember VINE by the winding swirl on their side that resembles the tendril of a vining plant!

 

In addition to GRDN, TIO, MALA, and VINE we have four more known cubs (mothered by LANC, JUJU, and THLS). That being said, we believe that there may be more black cubs that we have yet to assign to mothers!

 

 

THANK YOU FOR READING!

Warmly,

Taylor and Brianna

 

P.S. Keep an eye out for our update on South clan!