Friday 25 November 2022 02:20 AM Hyena plight is no laughing matter as study shows they are vanishing from ... trends now
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Hyenas may be famous for their cackling bark.
But they're disappearing from their homelands on the African savannah and it's deadly serious, a study says.
Along with wild dogs and cheetahs, hyenas are being driven to extinction by habitat loss, persecution by humans and reduced prey.
Hyenas, wild dogs and cheetahs are being driven to extinction by habitat loss, persecution by humans and reduced prey
But their plight is overlooked due to focus on predators such as lions, research in the journal PeerJ found.
Dr Paolo Strampelli, of Oxford University, said: 'Research effort is... biased towards lions and against striped hyenas despite the latter being the species with the widest continental range.'
The study is the first of its kind - based on a systematic review of population assessments over the last two decades.
Identifying knowledge gaps will improve conservation efforts by guiding funding, investment and priorities.
Dr Strampelli said: 'Our
