Name: オスのハイエナになるのが嫌になる理由 (Why It Sucks to Be a Male Hyena)
Uploaded: 2021-01-14T07:02:35.000Z
Duration: 3 min 2 s
Description: VoiceTubeの動画で発音を聞きながら英語表現を覚えよう！学べる英語：

And this is Scarface, one of the hyenas I studied in Kenya; and like all male spotted

Babyhood is actually the pinnacle of a male hyena’s life.

Itty-bitty cubs of both sexes rank just below their moms, who make up the entire top of

the clan's social hierarchy – more on that later.

So cubs have decent access to food, sleeping spots, and everything else.

Females generally don’t like mating with males from the clan they grew up in - it’s

probably nature’s way of avoiding inbreeding.

So once males turn two or so, they leave their clan and strike out on a lonely, dangerous

search for a clan with better mating prospects.

Lots of other mammalian males do the same thing, but for them, the transition to a new

group is an opportunity to challenge high-ranking individuals and increase their social standing.

They endure aggressive hazing by the new clan before even being allowed to join, and once

a male does gain acceptance, he becomes the very lowest-ranking hyena in the pecking...er...bone-cracking

The tastiest food rarely makes its way down to him, and there’s no way to move up the

social hierarchy besides simply waiting: either for new males to join the clan below him or

No adult male will ever top a single female, resulting in a female-dominated hierarchy.

This is all...weird; unlike most mammals, male hyenas are subordinate to females.

Which is probably because, unlike most mammals, female hyenas are bigger and meaner than males,

which is probably thanks to their need to stand up for their offspring in this kind

And unlike pretty much all mammals, physically fit or socially capable individuals can’t

make their way to the top of hyena society to do most of the decision- and baby-making.

They’re the only social mammals we know of with such a rigid hierarchy, and we don’t

Male hyenas like Scarface end up plagued with injuries from harassment & hazing, endure

prematurely worn-down teeth from eating too many bones, and on average, only live as half

The best they can hope for is that, at the end of the day, they’ll have left behind

a few cubs - which is not the best for the ones that turn out to be males.

While I was getting my PhD, I spent several years in Kenya studying hyenas like Scarface.

And the rest of the MinuteEarth team has done amazing research and explored all sorts of

To find out about the adventures of the MinuteEarth team, learn how we make videos, and ask us

your burning questions, join us for an livestreamed q&a on our Patreon page at Patreon.com/MinuteEarth

While you’re there, consider becoming a Patron; just a dollar a video from you means

we won’t have to resort to gnawing on bones to survive.