It had been a long time since I'd read a decent hyena book, so I opened Mikita Brottman's Hyena (London, 2012) with great anticipation.
I'm sorry to report that it was a bit of a disappointment: not nearly enough biology and too much undigested "reception history." Yes, it's true that hyenas are regarded with almost universal fear and revulsion. perhaps because they dig up corpses and run off with young children. But I knew that. And although Brottman mentions the unusual sexual apparatus of female hyenas, which causes so much difficulty with copulation and childbirth, she neglected to remind us that hyena males lack a baculum.
Good pictures, however. Here's one.
Not particularly lovable, I think.
I've seen a lot of stuffed animals in baby's cribs, but I've never seen a cute stuffed hyena. Merely a sampling error, it turns out. Stuffed hyenas suitable for your newborn are available on the internet,
Nevertheless, I a bit skeptical that hyenas will ever outsell the bunnies and puppies.
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