Why Are Cheetahs Scared Of Hyenas? Answered!
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Cheetahs are the world’s fastest land mammals. They use their speed to catch prey, but they are lightly built and avoid fights. That is why they usually back down from spotted hyenas. Here is the short answer.
Cheetahs avoid hyenas because they are built for speed, not fighting. A hyena is heavier, has a bone-crushing bite, and often arrives with other hyenas. For a cheetah, an injury can be fatal, because a cheetah that cannot run cannot hunt. Giving up a meal is the safer choice.
The Reason Why Cheetahs Are Afraid Of Hyenas
Cheetahs tend to avoid larger, stronger predators, especially lions and spotted hyenas.
There are two main reasons a cheetah backs away from a hyena. The first is the hyena’s powerful bite. The second is that hyenas are heavier, sturdier animals that often travel in groups.
A cheetah’s body is built for running. According to the Smithsonian’s National Zoo, cheetahs have small heads and short teeth, which limits their fighting ability, so they tend to choose flight over fight. They have long, lean legs and the muscles of a sprinter, not a wrestler.
Cheetahs usually hunt small and medium-sized prey such as gazelles and impalas, often animals that are skittish and quick to run. They avoid dangerous prey like buffalo. A cheetah cannot afford an injured leg.
Adult female cheetahs and many males hunt alone, usually during the day. Because they cannot defend their kills, they lose many of them. The National Zoo says cheetahs can be bullied away from their catch by lions, hyenas, and sometimes groups of vultures, and that they lose about 50% of their food this way.
Hyenas find kills by sight, sound and smell, including by watching for circling vultures. When they arrive, the cheetah usually leaves rather than fight.
Spotted hyenas are skilled hunters as well as scavengers. They often hunt in groups and have powerful jaws that can crack bones.
For a cheetah, a serious leg injury can be a death sentence, because it would no longer be able to chase down prey.
Numbers matter too. Cheetahs are rare, with only about 7,000 left in the wild by common estimates, while spotted hyenas are far more numerous and live in large clans.
Avoiding fights helps cheetahs survive. A cheetah that loses a meal can hunt again, but one that is badly injured may starve.
Do Hyenas Kill Cheetahs?
Hyenas and cheetahs share much of their range in Africa, and they often compete over food. In those contests, the hyena usually wins.
Do hyenas kill cheetahs? Sometimes. Hyenas, like lions, can kill cheetah cubs, and they occasionally kill adults. More often, hyenas simply steal the cheetah’s kill. That food loss is a real problem for cheetahs, especially mothers feeding cubs.
Cheetah cubs are very vulnerable. The National Zoo reports that in Tanzania’s Serengeti National Park, about 90% of cheetah cubs die before they are three months old. Predators, including lions and hyenas, are a major cause of these deaths.
Adult cheetahs usually escape hyenas easily thanks to their speed. In a one-on-one fight with no escape, though, the heavier hyena would likely win.
Hyenas use their sturdy bodies, stamina and strong jaws to take down prey, often hunting in groups. Cheetahs rely on stealth and a short burst of speed.
Cheetahs kill by suffocation, usually biting the prey’s throat, because their small teeth cannot deliver a crushing bite. That is one reason they choose prey they can overpower quickly.
Do Cheetahs Eat Hyenas?
Cheetahs and hyenas often meet in the wild, mostly over food. Hyenas sometimes kill cheetahs, but does it ever go the other way?
Do cheetahs eat hyenas? No. Cheetahs do not hunt hyenas. A hyena is too big, too strong and too dangerous for a cheetah’s throat-hold method of killing. Trying would risk serious injury.
Lions do kill hyenas, usually as competitors rather than as food, and they rarely eat them.
Cheetahs eat mostly small and medium-sized antelopes, such as gazelles, springbok, steenbok and impala. They also catch hares, birds, and the young of larger animals.
Cheetahs also have unusually clean eating habits. According to the National Zoo, they do not return to a kill or eat carrion, which is another reason they lose so much food to scavengers.
Can A Cheetah Beat A Hyena?
In the wild, cheetahs and hyenas compete for the same food. Could a cheetah ever win a fight with a hyena?
Can a cheetah beat a hyena? Rarely. A cheetah might drive off a lone hyena, especially a young one, but in most fights the hyena has the advantage in weight, bite strength and toughness. Hyenas have one of the strongest bites of any land mammal, while a cheetah’s small teeth limit its fighting ability.
Cheetahs are practical animals. They will not risk their lives for one meal when they can hunt again.
Spotted hyenas live in clans, while cheetahs are mostly solitary or live in small groups. The video below shows a cheetah facing a hyena over a kill.
Who Is Faster? Hyenas Or Cheetahs?
Cheetahs are much faster. The National Zoo says a cheetah’s top speed averages 60 to 70 miles per hour, though it can only hold that for about 300 yards.
Hyenas are slower sprinters but have much more stamina. They can chase prey over long distances. In a sprint, a cheetah easily escapes a hyena.
Final Words
Cheetahs avoid hyenas because they cannot afford to get hurt. Most run-ins are about food, and hyenas, along with lions, take a large share of cheetah kills.
Hyenas are often called thieves, but lions steal food from hyenas too, and hyenas catch much of their own prey. For cheetahs, giving way is simply the smartest survival strategy.
