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A few mammal books say that you get Brown Hyena in the Kruger. Iv never, nor has anybody I know, ever seen one.
Has anybody spotted one in Kruger? Photo's would be a bonus!!

Thanks guys...

Anthony, there has been a very strong debate on this forum about, if and when, a Brown Hyena was seen in Kruger.

I have been looking for an old predator book of mine, printed about 20 years ago, where it was stated that the Brown Hyena had not been seen for decades.

Since then, some people swear that they have seen the animals.

They were endemic to the area, and maybe a few animals survived the slaughter of our ancestors.

The official answer might be that there are no, "Brown Hyenas", but one never knows.

There are no brownies in Kruger. Go to Kgalagadi to see them.

A forumite (I think it was Penny) saw one in greater Kruger and posted the pic as proof. I cannot remember for the life of me where though

It was in the private reserve Thornybush, adjacent to Kruger and an awesome sighting.

Hi all. I did see a brown hyena in kruger in Letaba area about 10 years ago and since then never again.

Thanks Elsa

Hi all,

I just wanted to know why they have not been re-introduced into kruger if they originally were found there?

Batman

Batman, I think that there was a concern about their viability due to pressure from other predators.

I beleive they do occur in Kruger , just in very low numbers and probably exclusively nocturnal .
Forum member gmlSmit saw one in 1967 .
I beleive I caught a fleeting glimpse of one in the mid 1980's near Bateleur bushveld camp .

You may be surprised to hear that I have a newspaper clipping from 1997 with a photo showing one killed by a car very close to where I live .

We made our first visit to KRUGER during August 1967, and were still rather green.One morning we were driving across the low water bridge across the Olifants river near Balule and noticed a very strange looking creature ( very hairy dark brown with a lighter coloured neck and what seemed like stripes on the lower front legs hyena type of animal )for a while , we did not have a clue what it was .
We had a look in the MAMMALS of the Kruger and other National Parks by R J Labuschagne and N J van Niekerk and identified it as a Brown Hyaena ( Hyaena brunnea ) .I notice that Field Guide to the Larger Mammals of Africa by Chris and Tilda Stuart now mentions Parahyaena brunnea .In any case we then drove on and later upon getting back to Camp ( Olifants ) spoke to a SANPARKS person and he then confirmed that what we had actually seen was a Brown Hyaena and also mentioned that we were very fortunate with this sighting.
I discussed this with Tom Mollentze who was then Ranger at the Olifants area ,I think his post was named Klipkoppies , and from the description I gave , he also confirmed our sighting.being a Brown Hyaenain 1971.
Unfortunately that was our only sighting of it in KRUGER.
We have had quite a few sightings of these animals in the KTFP since 1972
which were also confirmed by Gus Mills.He also then mentioned that they were in KRUGER but very few and far between.
They were there then then , maybe a few still remain.

I can add that the late ranger Thys Mostert told me in person that there had been sightings by his field staff when stationed in the northern KNP around 40 years ago , and another ex ranger has confirmed seperate sightings by more than one KNP employee .

Wouldn't it be great to see them again? Hyena are amazing animals. Thanks for the great thread!

What about the mods consulting some of the rangers who have been in KNP for in excess of 30 years years , like Ben van Eeden , Louis Olivier and Johan Oelofse or Steven Witfield and Don English who grew up in the KNP .
They have field staff who have been there even longer .

Infact I have the telephone number of an assistant ranger who has worked there up north for more than 20 years , I will ask him as well .

Brown Hyena are very secretive. They can also go for long periods without water, so they might not be seen around water holes.

They are also nocturnal.

They might very well be around Kruger. There is a lot of place to hide. I would not dismiss them.

I suppose a question is about viability.