Hyena - this is what English Prime Minister W. Churchill calls Poland in his memoirs - his faithful ally in World War II, who snatched a fat piece of booty for herself, to which she had little to do, except for her participation in the behind-the-scenes games of London in which she more than the role of a “hyena”, and could not pretend to be. The role of Poland has changed little today.

On the eve of the Russia-EU summit in Helsinki, held on November 24, Poland vetoed the start of negotiations on concluding a new wide-format Russia-EU agreement. As is known, the current Russia-EU agreement expires at the end of 2007. Attempts by EU countries to persuade the Polish government to lift its veto were unsuccessful. Although we're talking about about energy security throughout Europe, the arguments of the Polish side simply amazed everyone: “What will we get from this? Make Russia buy our meat.” As you know, in November last year Russia banned the supply of meat from Poland due to gross violations of veterinary legislation.

In general, a similar position of Poland in the EU, and especially its relations with Russia and Germany - when it allows itself to dictate to Ukraine, Moldova or Georgia how to build their relations with Russia, or when it prohibits the Germans from erecting a museum and monument in their own capital Berlin millions of their compatriots who died and were expelled after 1945 from former German territories annexed by Poland after the First and Second World Wars - can only be explained from a historical point of view: it so happened that Poland after the Second World War is generally considered a victim country. At first - exclusively as a victim of Hitler's aggression, and after the collapse of the USSR, in the era of so-called glasnost, another version appeared - that two mustachioed rapist villains dishonored the blond and hair-eyed, innocent beauty of Poland in 1939. If you read more serious historical sources, you can be convinced that Poland is not at all like an innocent lamb. Throughout its centuries-old history, Poland has been an unconditional aggressor.

The peak of the aggressive actions of the Poles came in the “Time of Troubles” (the beginning of the 17th century), when, taking advantage of the general turmoil, the Poles captured Moscow and placed King Vladislav on the throne. In response to the Russians’ attempt to restore the status quo, the Poles, “not caring about the further consequences of such an affair and despising the revenge of the Russians,” burned Moscow to the ground. Only at the cost of enormous efforts and sacrifices did Russia manage to expel its “overstaying” neighbors. The end of the liberation war against the Poles, led by Prince Dmitry Pozharsky and the Nizhny Novgorod zemstvo elder Kozma Minin, which ended with the expulsion of the invaders from the Kremlin in 1612, is now, for the second year in a row, celebrated on November 4 as the Day of National Unity of Russia.

In the 20th century, during Józef Pilsudski’s attempt to create Greater Poland “from Mozh to Mozh,” the gentry, taking advantage of the then helplessness of Soviet Russia, captured part of Belarus and Ukraine. Yes, a piece of Lithuania to boot. Captured Polish army 130 thousand Red Army soldiers were captured, of whom 60 thousand (more than 46%) died in Polish camps between 1920 and 1922. At that time there were neither Gulag camps nor Auschwitz (which was an ordinary labor camp. - P.H.), so the Poles seemed to become trendsetters in relation to prisoners of war in the 20th century.

The report of the 2nd (intelligence) department of the main headquarters of the Polish Army, dated December 1938, emphasized: “The dismemberment of Russia lies at the basis of Polish policy in the East... Therefore, our possible position will be reduced to the following formula: who will take part in the division. Poland "should not remain passive at this wonderful historical moment. The task is to prepare well in advance physically and spiritually... The main goal is the weakening and defeat of Russia." One cannot help but recall that in the same year 1938, when, for example, the largest Orthodox church, for which Reich Chancellor Adolf Hitler himself made considerable donations, 114 were destroyed in Poland Orthodox churches. Polish Foreign Minister Jozef Beck has never hidden the fact that Poland lays claim to Ukraine and access to the Black Sea. In the history of independent Poland, it is generally difficult to find any period of cooperation with Russia. Moreover, there was a fundamental and constant conflict of interests for centuries. The conflict is over the territory of today's Belarus, Ukraine, the Baltic countries and Moldova.

Today, Poland's participation in supporting the "Orange Revolution" in Ukraine, the fuss over Georgia and Moldova, the scandal over the Polish national minority in Belarus, and its active role in admitting Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia to NATO are reminders that this conflict still exists.

What epithets has Warsaw received for Lately! It is also the center for the spread of democracy in Eastern Europe(yeah, and a place to house secret CIA dungeons! - P.H.), and Washington’s main ally in the Old World, and “overseeing” fledgling democracies, not to mention the fact that Poland is currently considered as the main counterweight to Russia.

Poland has the same relations with its western neighbor. The Germans today in their own country cannot even erect a monument to their dead compatriots - victims of the crime committed by the Poles against the civilian population after the war in the German territories ceded to Poland. At the same time, some burgomasters of Polish cities, led by the then mayor of Warsaw, and now the country's president, Lech Kaczynski, ordered to begin a separate calculation of the damage caused by the Germans in their city. Moreover, interestingly, Warsaw is going to bill both the Germans (for burning and blowing up buildings) and the Russians (for not preventing this). It’s the same with Wroclaw/Breslau: let the Germans pay for destroying the city while defending it, and let the Russians pay for attacking it, thereby provoking the defense of the city.

From textbooks on the history of World War II it is known that it began due to Poland’s refusal to satisfy German claims. However, it is much less known what exactly Hitler wanted from Warsaw. Meanwhile, Germany’s demands were very moderate: to return the “free city of Danzig” to Germany and resolve the transit issue, that is, to allow the construction of extraterritorial highways and railways, connecting East Prussia with the main part of Germany.

No matter how negatively Hitler’s personality is assessed today, these demands can hardly be called unfounded. The overwhelming majority of the inhabitants of Danzig, unjustly separated from Germany according to Versailles, were Germans who sincerely wanted to reunite with their historical homeland. The demand for roads was also quite natural, especially since the Germans did not encroach on the lands separating the two parts of Germany.

Therefore, when Germany, on October 24, 1938, proposed to Poland to resolve the problems of Danzig and the “Polish corridor,” it seemed that nothing foreshadowed complications. The English writer and former member of parliament Archibald Ramsay writes: “Hitler’s proposals were extremely generous - he agreed to recognize Poland’s right to own most of the German territories given to it under the Treaty of Versailles, in exchange for which Germany would be allowed to build a highway to Danzig. Instead, a wave repression and terror fell upon the German population living in the territories ceded to Poland after Versailles. But the population of Europe, thanks to the efforts of the media, did not know anything about this. The press breathed hatred towards everything German. “Hitler cannot be trusted!” - screamed the newspaper headlines." .

The campaign in the then Western press against Germany and its Chancellor Hitler is like two peas in a pod to what the Western press allows itself today in relation to Russia and its President Putin. On the agenda, as then, are problems territorial integrity countries, high-profile trials against G. Dimitrov in then Germany and D. Khodorkovsky in today's Russia and the same “Corridor” to Koenigsberg-Kaliningrad. And what is most interesting is that Poland - both today and then - plays the same role as the main instigator of conflicts.

As A. Ramsey wrote, “the slogan “Hitler cannot be trusted!” was based on a deliberate distortion of attempts to resolve the territorial issue. Hitler always stated that his program to correct the injustices of the Versailles dictatorship included five points, none of which he intended This included: the Sudetenland, part of the lands (not all) torn from Germany and transferred to Poland, the city of Danzig and the “Corridor.” In the world press, the events were presented as if Hitler “promised” not to make territorial claims to anyone again if the issue with the Sudetenland will be resolved peacefully, although he did not say anything like that. When, after the Munich Treaty, Hitler continued the program to restore the territorial integrity of Germany, the press immediately raised a howl that he was doing this “contrary to his own promises.” In reality, Hitler stated that he did not intend to make any additional demands, but the press presented this out of context - as if this statement applied to each territory separately - while he had in mind the entire program as a whole."

Lord Lothian, the British Ambassador to the United States, made an honest comment on this topic. In his last speech in Chatami he said: “If the principle of self-determination in relation to Germany were applied in an honest manner, it would mean the return of the Sudetenland, part of the Polish territories, the “Corridor” and Danzig.” Seeing the intransigence of the Poles, Hitler decided to enforce his demands by force. April 3, 1939 chief OKW headquarters General Wilhelm Keitel presented the draft "Directives on the unified preparation of the armed forces for war for 1939-1940." On April 28, speaking in the Reichstag, Hitler announced the annulment of the 1934 German-Polish Declaration of Friendship and Non-Aggression.

At the same time, England and France are persuading Poland not to yield to Hitler in anything, and if something happens, the Western democracies as one will come to its defense.

Author of the book "What Happened on June 22, 1941?" Alexander Usovsky writes: "... Designated Germany's enemy, the regime of "sanation" Poland not only had to provoke Germany into bloodshed - this would have been extremely insufficient. Poland had to play the role of the instigator of the Great European War. The main war - between Germany and the newcomer to help dying Poland Soviet Union. The Poles were always ready to subject Germany to fire and sword - this is what the distant “guarantors of Polish independence” played on. In other words, taking advantage of the frank narrow-mindedness of the Polish military and civilian leadership, their noble arrogance, their stupid arrogance, and disdain for other peoples, certain circles in the West found in Poland the ideal material for igniting a pan-European military conflagration.”

The Polish leadership did not even hide its desire to fight Germany; it was so confident in its victory that, for example, on August 18, 1939, the Polish ambassador in Paris Juliusz Łukasiewicz, in a conversation with French Foreign Minister Georges Bonnet, arrogantly declared that “not the Germans, but the Poles will break into the depths of Germany in the very first days of the war !" (Mosley L. Lost time. How the Second began World War/ Abbr. lane from English E. Fedotova. M., 1972. P.301).

As the American researcher Henson Baldwin, who worked as the war editor of the New York Times during the war, noted in his book, “they (the Poles) talked and dreamed of a “march on Berlin.”

Their hopes are well reflected in the words of one of the songs:

"...clad in steel and armor,
led by Rydz-Smigly,
We will march to the Rhine..."

But before that there was Czechoslovakia. We all “know” from history textbooks that Hitler’s first act of aggression as a result of the so-called “Munich Agreement” was the occupation of the Sudetenland. And few people know that at the same time Poland attacked Czechoslovakia. What was the difference in the actions of Germany and Poland? The fact is that, unlike Poland, the Germans regained the Sudetenland in accordance with an international treaty signed by all countries participating in the Treaty of Versailles, according to which, after the First World War, the Sudetenland was transferred to the newly created state of Czechoslovakia.

On September 29, 1938, the heads of four European states gathered in Munich and signed the following agreement among themselves: “Munich, September 29, 1938. Germany, Great Britain, France and Italy, in accordance with the agreement already reached in principle on the cession of the Sudetenland-German region, agreed on the following the conditions and forms of this concession, as well as the measures necessary for this, and by virtue of this agreement declare each of themselves responsible for ensuring the measures necessary for its implementation."

This Agreement was signed by German Chancellor A. Hitler, French Prime Minister E. Deladier, Italian leader B. Mussolini and British Prime Minister N. Chamberlain. That is, there was actually no German aggression, but there was an international treaty.

Imagine for a moment this situation: Russia, on a voluntary basis, unites with Belarus and, under certain conditions, with the participation of international observers, resolves with Ukraine the issue of the return of Crimea. This, of course, does not suit certain forces in the West, and they persuade Lithuania not to make any concessions and negotiations on the issue of transit to Kaliningrad, that is, to the same East Prussia, thereby provoking a conflict, and within a few years NATO is seizing Russia is satisfied with something like the Nuremberg Tribunal (or, in the modern version, the Hague International Tribunal), which accuses Russia of aggression against Belarus, Ukraine and the Baltic states. And the new “democratic” governments are expelling from the Baltic states and Crimea all Russians who at one time welcomed Russia’s actions.

But this is exactly what they did with Germany, which was already retroactively blamed for the unification (Anschluss) with Austria and the issue with the Sudetenland resolved at the international level. It should also be taken into account that Czechoslovakia was part of the Monarchy destroyed by Versailles, and the desire of the Third Reich government to maintain its influence in this region was as natural as, for example, Russia’s desire to maintain its influence today in the Caucasus and other post-Soviet republics. And Transnistria or Crimea is nothing more than a modern version of the Sudetenland and Danzig. One must think that for the Russian residents of Crimea, who cherish the dream of reunification with Russia, the main thing is not at all who is in power in the Kremlin - Yeltsin, Putin or Zhirinovsky. Likewise, the population of Danzig and the Sudetenland did not support Hitler, which they later blamed, but rather reunification with their homeland, regardless of who sat in the Reichstag - National Socialists, Social Democrats or Communists.

That is why the prosecutors at the Nuremberg trials suffered, trying in their indictment to present the annexation of the Sudetenland as an aggression by Germany, since the defeated country simply did not have the right to vote in its own defense. In the end, they came up with the following wording: “After the Nazi conspirators threatened war, Great Britain and France entered into an agreement with Germany and Italy on September 29, 1938 in Munich, providing for the cession of the Sudetenland to Germany. Czechoslovakia was demanded to agree to this. October 1 1938 German troops occupied the Sudetenland."

Here, it turns out, is what’s going on: Germany, with a population of 70 million people, frightened the British Empire with war, in which every fourth person in the world then lived and which, together with the metropolis, had 532 million inhabitants, and the French colonial empire, numbering 109 million . people, and only because of this they agreed to the return of the Sudetenland-German region.

In this case, the place in the dock at Nuremberg, first of all, should have been taken by the entire pre-war Polish elite, if only because at the same time, when Germany agreed to return the Sudetenland to it, Poland attacked in October 1938 Czechoslovakia, seizing from it the Teschen region, in which at that time lived 156 thousand Czechs and Germans and only 77 thousand Poles, without any consent from England, France and Italy - absolutely without permission! In Munich, the problem of the Polish minority in Czechoslovakia was not addressed. The Agreement stated the following: “The Heads of Government of the Four Powers declare that if within the next three months the problem of the Polish and Hungarian national minorities in Czechoslovakia is not resolved by agreement between the Governments concerned, this problem will be the subject of further discussion at the next meeting of the Heads of Government of the Four Powers present here." The Poles did not wait three months and they did not conclude any agreements with the Czechs - they issued an ultimatum to Czechoslovakia and attacked it. Today in Poland they are trying to forget this page of their history. Thus, the authors of “The History of Poland from Ancient Times to the Present Day”, published in Warsaw, managed not to mention at all their country’s participation in the division of Czechoslovakia. However, at that time the capture of the Teshen region was considered a national triumph. Józef Beck was awarded the Order of the White Eagle, although for such a “feat”, say, the Order of the Spotted Hyena would have been more suitable. If Germany acted by agreement, then the Poles have not the slightest justification for this - Poland was an aggressor in its purest form!

It is impossible to dispute this conclusion, it can only be silenced, which is what Poland is doing, while accusing all its neighbors of crimes against it and hiding behind this its own ethnic cleansing, expulsions and pogroms. So, for example, in 1962 in Jedwabne, an inscription was carved on a memorial stone: “Place of execution of the Jewish population. Hitler’s Gestapo and gendarmerie burned 1,600 people alive. 10.7.1941.” And only in 2000 Poland had to admit that it was not the Nazis who did this, as was always claimed, but the Poles themselves. J. Echranski, former director of the Polish editorial office of Radio Free Europe, wrote: “We have always protested against the lie contained in the Soviet inscription over the mass graves in the Katyn Forest: according to it, the Nazi invaders destroyed this place in 1941 year of Polish prisoners of war. Two monuments in Jedwabne bear similar lies."

At the beginning of 2006, during a visit to Germany, Polish President Lech Kaczynski, in an interview with Der Spiegel magazine, when asked about the possibility of building a “Center against Expulsion” in Berlin, replied: “I consider this Center a very bad idea, leading to the fact that the fault (of the German people) will be called into question." This, apparently, worries Poland most of all, because by presenting itself as a “victim,” it is more convenient to hide the true role that Poland plays in the performance ordered by the West, the goal of which is to prevent rapprochement between Germany and Russia.

أيما لحم نبت من حرام فالنار أولى به

That is why we considered it very important to inform Muslims about those animals whose meat is allowed to be eaten. Since residents of Russia and the CIS countries adhere mainly to the Hanafi and Shafi'i madhhabs, we decided to explain this topic according to these two madhhabs.

Animals whose meat is permissible and animals whose meat is forbidden to eat according to the Hanafi madhhab

Islam is a religion of mercy and compassion. The precepts and prohibitions of Islam bring only good to people. But the human mind, due to the fact that it is extremely limited, cannot always understand the reason for each precept of religion. The mind may not be able to understand why the decision is the way it is, but Allah Almighty, All-Merciful and All-Knowing, knows best of all what is beneficial and what is harmful for us, because He created us.

Allah Almighty bestowed His beloved Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) on humanity as a light and a source of light. Islamic law (Shariah), with which the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) came, established the difference between living and dead animals. Dead meat was declared forbidden (haram). Certain animals that are harmful to humans, such as pigs, dogs, cats and carnivores, have also become forbidden to eat, that is, the meat of animals that are forbidden to be eaten according to Shariah is harmful to humans, whether we realize it or not.

Taking into account the above, it should be noted that each school of Islamic law (madhab) has its own principles (based on the Koran and Sunnah) regarding which meat of animals is allowed (halal) to be eaten and which is forbidden (haram).
Below are the principles on which the scholars of the Hanafi madhhab are based. These principles are set out in the classic books on Hanafi fiqh (Al-Fatawaul-Hindiyya, No. 5/289–291; Badais-Sanai, No. 5/35–39; Raddul-Mukhtar, No. 304–308).

1. Animals whose consumption has been expressly prohibited in the Qur'an and Sunnah are undoubtedly haram, such as pig, donkey, etc.

2. Animals that are born and live in water are haram, with the only exception being fish. All types of fish are halal, except those fish that die naturally in the sea without any external cause. But if the fish died due to some external reason, for example from cold, heat, from running into a stone or being thrown onto the shore by a wave, etc., then such a fish is halal.

Allah Almighty says (meaning): “You are forbidden to eat carrion, blood, pork...” (Surah Al-Maida, verse 53).

In the above verse, the Almighty forbade carrion meat, without dividing animals into those living on land and in the sea. Therefore, all marine animals also fall under this general prohibition. But the fish don't fall under this general rule, because the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) clearly indicated its permissibility.
Abdullah ibn Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: “Two types of carrion and two types of blood were permitted for food. Two types of carrion are fish and locusts, and two types of blood are liver and spleen” (Sunan Abu Dawud, Musnad Ahmad, Sunan Ibn Majah).

Moreover, there is not a single mention in the collections of Sunnah that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) or his companions at least once ate the meat of some sea ​​creatures except for fish. If such meat were halal, at least a single case of eating the meat of sea animals for food would be known from the Sunnah, to show that it is permissible (Dars Tirmidhi, No. 1/280).

Regarding eating fish that naturally died in the sea without the influence of any external causes (samaqat-tafi), Jabir ibn Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with him) reports that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: “You It is permissible to eat what the sea spews out and what remains after the tide, but what dies in the sea and floats on the surface, you cannot eat” (Sunan Abu Dawud, No. 3809; Sunan Ibn Majah).

Ali forbade the sale in markets of fish that died a natural death (that die in the sea and then float to the surface) (“Badai al-Sanai”, No. 5/36; “Al-Ikhtiyar”).
In light of the above, we can conclude that all marine animals, except fish, are prohibited for consumption. It is permissible to eat fish even without observing all the rules for slaughtering animals according to Sharia. But if the fish died a natural death without external influence and floated to the surface of the water (samakat-tafi), then it is prohibited (haram) to eat such fish.

3. Among animals that live on land, those that do not have blood are prohibited (haram) for consumption. For example: hornet, fly, spider, beetle, scorpion, ant, etc. Allah Almighty says (meaning): “ …(The Prophet) who encourages good, restrains from what is disapproved, allows them to eat good (clean) food suitable for human nature, and forbids what is harmful (and unclean) for people"(Surah Al-Araf, verse 157).

Living beings in which blood circulates through an open circulatory system(spider, etc.) are considered unclean, because eating them disgusts a person.
The exception is locusts, because the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) clearly indicated its permissibility in the above-mentioned hadith, which is given in the collections “Sunan” of Abu Dawud and “Musnad” of Imam Ahmad.
In addition, Ibn Abi Awfa (may Allah be pleased with him), when asked whether locusts can be eaten, replied: “ I fought with the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) in six or seven battles, and we ate them (locusts) together."(Sunan Abu Dawud, no. 3806).

4. Amphibians and reptiles are also prohibited, for example: snake, lizard, chameleon, etc.

5. According to the fifth principle, all pest animals (hasharatul-ard) are prohibited (haram) for consumption, such as mice, hedgehogs, jerboas, etc. The reason for the prohibition of eating their meat is that they are also considered unclean food.

6. All land-dwelling animals in which blood circulates, which eat grass and leaves and do not hunt other animals (that is, not predators living on the land), are permitted (halal) for consumption, such as camel, cow, goat , buffalo, ram, etc. However, in the Hanafi madhhab there is a slight disagreement regarding the consumption of horse meat, but this will be discussed later. The exception to this category of animals is the donkey - its meat is prohibited from being eaten.

Allah Almighty says (meaning): « Allah, in His mercy, created cattle (an'am) for you so that you could use wool and fluff for warmth, and meat for food.» (Surah An-Nahl, verse 5).

And also (meaning): « Allah is the One who made cattle subject to you, so that you could ride some and eat from others.» (Surah Al-Mumin, verse 79).

In the above verses, Allah Almighty uses the word “al-an’am” (cattle), which, according to the unanimous opinion of all experts Arabic, denotes herbivores.

Regarding the consumption of horse meat, Imam Abu Hanifa (may Allah have mercy on him) expressed the opinion that it is blameworthy (makruh tanzih) because the horse is a noble animal and is used during jihad. Imams Abu Yusuf and Muhammad (may Allah have mercy on them) spoke out in favor of the permissibility of eating horse meat, and it is reported that Imam Abu Hanifa also expressed this opinion. Therefore, it is permissible to eat horse meat, but it is better to refrain from it.

Regarding the meat of a donkey and a mule, the Almighty says (meaning): “ Allah created for you horses, mules and donkeys so that you could ride them and so that they would be an ornament for you that would bring you joy. Allah has created other means of transportation that you do not know."(Surah An-Nahl, verse 8).

Thus, we see that all other herbivorous animals are permissible for food, since Allah Almighty said so (as we learned from the previously cited verses). But regarding donkeys and mules, the Creator said that they were intended for riding and decoration. If eating these animals were permissible, the Almighty would, without a doubt, point it out.

Moreover, Abdullah bin Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates, that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) forbade eating donkey meat on the day of the Battle of Khaybar(Sahih al-Bukhari, no. 5202).

Abu Talaba (may Allah be pleased with him) reports that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) forbade eating the meat of donkeys (Sahih al-Bukhari, No. 5205).

Regarding mules, Khalid bin Walid (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates, that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) prohibited the meat of horses, mules and donkeys (Musnad Ahmad, no. 4/89; Sunan Abu Dawud, no. 3790; Sunan Nasai and Sunan Ibn Majah).

7. All predatory animals that live on land and animals that hunt with their claws are haram. For example: lion, cheetah, tiger, leopard, wolf, fox, dog, cat, etc.

8. Everyone is haram predator birds that hunt with their claws. For example: falcon, eagle, kite, hawk, etc. Prohibited bat, although it belongs to mammals. The evidence for these two principles (7th and 8th) is the famous hadith from Abdullah ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with him), in which the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) forbade eating the meat of predators with fangs and birds with claws (Sahih Muslim, No. 1934). Therefore, all predatory animals and birds (animals that hunt others with their tusks and birds that hunt with their claws) are haram.

9. Birds that do not hunt other animals with their claws, mainly feeding instead on seeds and grains, are permitted as food, such as chicken, duck, pigeon, swallow, etc. Abu Musa al-Ashari (may he be pleased with him) Allah) said: " I saw the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) eating chicken "(Sahih al-Bukhari, no. 5198).

10. If a halal animal eats only unclean foods, as a result of which its meat and milk acquires an unpleasant odor, it is makrooh to consume such milk and meat. But if, along with unclean animals, an animal eats clean products or eating an unclean animal does not in any way affect its meat and milk, then eating the meat and milk of such an animal is absolutely permissible (“Raddul-Mukhtar”, No. 6/340). The book “Al-Fatawa al-Hindiyya” says: “ It is makruh to eat chicken meat only if most of what it eats is unclean, and the unclean food affects the chicken meat so that it has an unpleasant odor."(Al-Fatawa ul-Hindiyya, No. 5/289).

11. If one of the parents of an animal is a halal animal and the other is a haraam animal, the decision regarding the meat of that animal depends on who its mother is. If the mother is a halal animal, the meat of her young is halal, as is the case with a hybrid animal whose mother is a mare or cow. But if the mother is one of the forbidden animals, the meat of her cub is haram, as is the case with a mule whose mother is a donkey.

Eleven were given above general principles regarding the determination of permissibility/impermissibility of eating meat according to the Hanafi madhhab of Islamic law. It should be noted that the term “halal” in this case exclusively implies the permissibility of eating the meat of certain animals for food. There are rules regarding how animals should be slaughtered and how they should be hunted, for which one should consult books of fiqh. Failure to comply with these rules can turn the meat of an initially permitted animal into a forbidden one.

Based on the eleven principles outlined above, we will present the lists of permitted (halal) and forbidden (haram) animals for food according to the Hanafi madhhab (both lists are not exhaustive).

Animals whose meat is halal:

1) camel; 2) goat; 3) ram; 4) buffalo; 5) deer; 6) rabbit; 7) cow; 8) wild donkey; 9) fish; 10) antelope/gazelle; 11) duck; 12) heron; 13) nightingale; 14) quail; 15) parrot; 16) turach; 17) locusts; 18) partridge; 19) lark; 20) sparrow; 21) goose; 22) ostrich; 23) dove; 24) wild pigeon; 25) stork; 26) rooster; 27) chicken; 28) peacock; 29) starling; 30) hoopoe

Animals whose meat is prohibited (haram) for consumption:

1) wolf; 2) hyena; 3) cat; 4) monkey; 5) Scorpio; 6) leopard; 7) tiger; 8) cheetah; 9) lion; 10) jerboa; 11) bear; 12) pig; 13) protein; 14) hedgehog; 15) snake; 16) turtle; 17) dog; 18) crab; 19) jackal; 20) donkey (domestic); 21) lizard; 22) fox; 23) crocodile; 24) ermine/weasel; 25) elephant; 26) falcon; 27) hawk; 28) kite; 29) bat; 30) fingerboard; 31) mouse; 32) rat; 33) all insects and animals close to them (mosquito, fly, spider, beetles, etc.).

Animals whose meat is permissible and animals whose meat is forbidden to eat according to the Shafi'i madhhab

The basis of halal (permissible) and haram is the verse of the holy Quran, which says: “ And the Almighty allows you pure (good) and forbids evil "(Surah Araf, verse 159).

وَيُحِلُّ لَهُمُ الطَّيِّبَاتِ وَيُحَرِّمُ عَلَيْهِمُ الْخَبَائِثَ

All animals that live in the sea (water) and cannot live for a long time outside of water are allowed for consumption. For example: whale, shark, dolphin, etc.

And animals that live on land are also allowed to be consumed, except for those prohibited by Sharia. Those with fangs or claws needed for hunting are prohibited.

Permissible animals include: sheep, goat, cow, camel, chicken, horse, sable, hyena, wild ass, fox, gazelle, mountain goat, hare, rabbit, lizard, African jerboa, squirrel, hedgehog, porcupine, locust, ostrich, duck, goose, crane, pelican, pigeon, nightingale, bustard, jackdaw, sparrow and the like in nature.

Forbidden animals include: mule, domestic donkey, lion, tiger, wolf, bear, elephant, monkey, falcon, hawk, eagle, owl, jackal, cat (both wild and domestic), snake, crow, scorpion, kite, mouse, birdie, vulture, parrot, peacock, bat, mollusks (invertebrates, soft-bodied animals, usually covered with a shell), as well as all insects - the exception is locusts.

All animals that can live both on land and in water are prohibited. For example: crocodile, turtle, frog, crayfish etc.

Those animals that were born from permitted and unlawful animals are also prohibited. For example, mule.

There are also animals that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) not only forbade eating, but also killing. These include: bat, ant, bee, hoopoe, frog.

There are also animals that are desirable to kill. These include: snake, mouse (including rat), spotted raven, mad dog, kite.

It is prohibited to eat the meat of an animal that was not slaughtered in accordance with Shariah, with the exception of fish, locusts and the embryo that was found in the womb of the slaughtered animal.

Eating the eggs of any animal, even forbidden ones, is permitted. For example, eggs of an eagle, crow, etc.

It is also prohibited to consume evil spirits (najasa), such as carrion, blood, alcohol (since it also belongs to najasa), narcotic and psychotropic substances (including tobacco and other smoking mixtures), as well as anything that harms the body, such as poison , glass, earth, etc. For the Almighty says in the Koran: “ Don't expose yourself to death! »

التَّهْلُكَةِ سورة البقرة 195

It is not advisable to eat food that was purchased with money earned by sweeping, as well as with money received for work during which a person engages in uncleanness (najasa), for example, bloodletting, etc.

A person in a hopeless situation is allowed to consume everything that is not allowed, unlike someone who has a choice. For example, if a person is dying of hunger, he can even eat dog or pig meat, but only in the amount necessary to preserve life.

Opinions of four madhhabs regarding the permissibility and prohibition of eating the meat of certain animals

Animal name	Rules of the Hanafi madhab	Jukm of Shafi'i madhab	Jukm of the Maliki madhhab	Rules of the Hanbali madhab
Shark
Snipe
Squirrel		halal
Buffalo
Bug
Flea
Camel
water snake
Wolf
Sparrow
Crow
Louse
Gazelle
Cheetah
Pigeon
Turtle Dove
Hyena
Goose
Dolphin
Wild goats
Great snipe
Lark
Crane
Stag beetle
Autumn zhigalka
Giraffe
Wild goats
Great snipe
Snake				Can be eaten except for the head and part of the tail
Turkey
Flounder
Canary
Carp
Goat
Cat
Kite
Mole
Cow
Crocodile
Grasshopper
Marten
Kulan
Partridge
Chicken
Weasel
Martin
Leopard
Bat
Fox
Horse	Tanzihan makrooh
Frog
Bear
Mussels
Guinea pig
Sea Horse
Mole
Ant
Fly
Mouse
Monkey
Sheep
Eagle
Donkey
Peacock
Carrion
Spider
Quail
Parrot
Bee
Fish (died in water without visible reasons and pop-up)
Carp
Peregrine Falcon
Locust
Pig
gray heron
Dog
Sable
Owl
Nightingale
Magpie
Falcon
Scorpion
Starling
Elephant
Mediterranean turtle
Ostrich
Cockroach
Tiger
Acne
Hoopoe
Snail
Duck
Gull
Turtle
Black vulture
Jackal
Hornet
Hawk
Lizard

May the Almighty give us the opportunity to consume only halal (permissible) and distance us from haram! Amine.

People have always disliked hyenas, considering them ugly, cowardly and sinister creatures. However, these accusations are unfair. In fact, hyenas are extremely interesting and intelligent animals with an amazing social organization.

Hyenas (Huaenidae) are a family of mammalian predators. They are widespread in semi-deserts, steppes and savannas of Africa, Arabia, India and Western Asia.

The family unites only 4 species of hyenas in 4 genera. Let's get to know them better.

Striped hyena (Hyaena hyaena)

This species is found in North Africa, the Arabian Peninsula and bordering Asian regions.

The striped hyena's fur is long and ranges from light gray to beige in color. There are from 5 to 9 vertical stripes on the body, and a black spot on the throat.

Brown hyena (Hyaena brunnea)

The brown (coastal) hyena is common in South Africa and in Southern Angola. Most often it can be found along the western coast of Namibia. Inhabits semi-deserts and open savannas. Avoids the places where its fellow spotted hyenas hunt, since the latter are much larger and stronger.

The coat is shaggy, black-brown in color, with the neck and shoulders being lighter. There are white horizontal stripes on the limbs.

Spotted hyena (Crocuta crocuta)

Found in sub-Saharan Africa, except in the rain forests of the Congo Basin and the extreme south.

The coat is short, sandy, red or brown. There are dark spots on the back, sides, sacrum and limbs.

In this species, the external genitalia of males and females are difficult to distinguish, hence the myth that these animals are hermaphrodites.

Aardwolf (Proteles cristatus)

The aardwolf, classified as a hyena, lives in Southern and Eastern Africa.

It feeds exclusively on insects, licking them from the ground with a long, wide tongue. More information about this type can be found in the article.

External features

Externally, hyenas resemble dogs with a large head and a powerful body. Distinctive features are long forelimbs, a relatively long neck and a drooping back.

The body length of animals, depending on the species, is 0.9-1.8 meters, weight - 8-60 kg. The smallest species is the aardwolf, the largest is the spotted hyena.

The structure of the body speaks volumes about its adaptability to feeding on carrion. The front part of the body is more powerful than the back, which is why the hyena has a characteristic sloping back. With its elongated forelimbs the animal presses the carcass tightly to the ground. Strong jaws and teeth, as well as powerful chewing and neck muscles help the animal cut meat and crush bones like pruning shears, extracting nutritious marrow from them.

Lifestyle

Hyenas are active mainly at dusk and at night. Very strong jaws and teeth, an efficient digestive system and the ability to travel long distances all make hyenas successful scavengers.

Food and hunting

Carcasses of dead animals form the basis of the diet of brown and striped hyenas. They supplement their menu with invertebrates, wild fruits, eggs and occasionally small animals that they manage to kill.

Spotted hyenas are not only effective scavengers, but also good hunters. They are capable of chasing prey at a speed of 60 km/h, covering a distance of up to 3 km. They usually hunt young large antelopes (oryx, wildebeest). They can cope with an adult zebra, and often with a buffalo.

Spotted hyenas often hide food in silty ponds. If they are hungry, they return to their hiding places.

Hyenas have an unusually well-developed sense of smell: they can smell the smell of decaying meat located several kilometers away from them.

In terms of nutrition, aardwolves are radically different from their relatives. Their diet mainly consists of termites and insect larvae.

It is interesting that termites try to defend themselves by spraying a burning substance, but there is no control over the aardwolf. His bare nose is so dense that insects cannot bite through it.

Brown hyenas prefer to hunt alone; their spotted relatives often form groups.

Since carrion is easy to find by smell, brown hyenas do not need to search for food together. In addition, the amount of food they obtain is usually only enough for one individual, so collective search for food would lead to competition between individuals.

The collective hunting strategy of spotted hyenas can be explained by the greater likelihood of success when group members combine their efforts. In addition, the large prey that they can obtain together allows them to feed many animals at the same time.

In the photo: spotted hyenas gathered near the carcass of an antelope. Group eating is often accompanied by very loud noise, but rarely by serious contractions. Each animal can eat up to 15 kg of meat in one sitting!

Family life

All types of hyenas, except the aardwolf, live in groups (clans). Clan members occupy a common territory and jointly defend it from neighbors.

In the spotted hyena clan, females dominate, and even the highest-ranking males are subordinate to the lowest-ranking females. Males leave their native clan when they are on the threshold of maturity. They join the new group and gradually climb the hierarchical ladder to gain the right to participate in reproduction. Females tend to remain in the maternal clan and inherit their mother's rank.

Brown hyenas have clans built somewhat differently. Some males and females leave their natal group in adolescence, others remain in it for a long time, sometimes for life. Males who have left their family join another clan or lead a wandering lifestyle.

The sizes of clans vary both among different species and within one species, depending on environmental conditions. Spotted hyenas usually have the largest families: they sometimes number more than 80 individuals.

In brown hyenas, the clan can consist only of a female and her cubs of the last litter.

The size of the territory occupied by a clan also varies significantly, but it is usually determined by the abundance of food resources. For example, in the Ngorongoro Crater, the population density of wildebeest and zebra allows a large clan to exist in a small area. And in the arid climate of the Kalahari, where hyenas often have to cover a distance of 50 km in search of prey, the territory occupied by the group is much larger.

Communication

The social systems of hyenas are extremely complex.

First, animals have an effective system for communicating over distance using smells. Distinctive feature All hyenas have an anal sac, which they use for a unique type of scent marking. It's called "smearing". Striped and spotted hyenas produce a thick sticky secretion of one type; their brown relatives produce a thick white secretion and a secretion in the form of a black sticky mass. The animal touches the grass stem with its anal gland and runs it along the stem, moving forward, leaving a mark. There can be up to 15 thousand marked points in one area, so that trespassers immediately understand that the owner is in place.

Secondly, hyenas demonstrate elaborate greeting ceremonies. During such a ritual, the fur on the back of brown and striped species stands on end, and the animals sniff each other’s head, body and anal sac. Then a ritual fight occurs, during which the dominant individual often bites, holds and shakes the neck and throat of the animal occupying a subordinate position. Among spotted hyenas, the ceremony involves mutual sniffing and licking of the genital area.

What sounds do hyenas make?

Hyenas hoot, make high-pitched screams and strange giggling-like sounds. Signals perceived by humans as hooting are transmitted over several kilometers. With their help, hyenas communicate over long distances. Animals repeat such signals several times, which helps to establish their location, and the signal of each individual has individual characteristics.

Some acoustic signals emitted by hyenas can only be heard by humans with the help of an amplifier and headphones.

Procreation and raising offspring

There is no specific breeding season for hyenas. Females do not mate with related males, which avoids degeneration. Numerous males wander alone through deserts and savannas. Having met a female during her short estrus, the male fertilizes her, and she returns to her family. Pregnancy lasts approximately 90 days, after which 1 to 5 cubs are born.

Unlike other predatory mammals, spotted hyena cubs are born sighted and with teeth already erupted. Babies of the same litter are involved in aggressive interactions almost from birth, as a result, a clear hierarchy quickly develops between them, and this allows the dominant cub to control access to mother's milk. Sometimes aggression leads to the death of its weaker brother.

Hyenas of all species keep their young in dens, which are a system of underground burrows. Here young individuals can stay for up to 18 months. Females of the same clan usually keep their young in a large common burrow.

Different types of hyenas raise their children differently. Spotted animals begin to feed them meat only from the age of nine months, when the younger generation is already able to accompany their mother on the hunt. Until this point, they are completely dependent on their mother's milk.

Brown hyenas also feed their offspring with milk for more than a year, but from three months on, the cubs’ diet is supplemented by food brought to the shelter by their parents and other members of the clan.

The photo shows a spotted hyena with a cub.

All members of the family unit take part in raising the younger generation.

Hyena and man

There are no endangered hyena species, but several populations are threatened. And the reason for this is human persecution caused by prejudice and negative attitudes towards these animals. In North Africa and the Arabian Peninsula, striped hyenas are considered grave desecrators. People's disgust towards them reaches such an extent that they are poisoned and caught in traps.

The fact that hyenas eat carrion also repels people from them. However, do not forget that brown and striped hyenas actually represent a natural waste recycling system.

The fate of brown hyenas is not as sad as that of striped ones, since in the southern part of their African habitat farmers are gradually changing their attitude towards them. This species is also protected in a number of nature reserves and national parks.

The spotted hyena most often comes into conflict with the local population, as it attacks livestock. The status of this species is determined by the IUCN as “Low Threat: Needs Protection.” However, this species is quite common in many large national parks and in other protected areas in Eastern and Southern Africa.

The status of other species is “low threat level: not of concern.”

In contact with

What can a meeting with a pack of hyenas in the African savannah promise? They're not the nicest animals, so it's not good. And if this happens at night, and with hungry hyenas...
One eccentric old man in Harare made this an attraction not for the faint of heart. Every day, a few hours after sunset, he goes beyond the outskirts of the city directly to meet packs of hungry hyenas with a basket of rotten meat and feeds them. First with a stick at arm's length, then simply with his hand, and in the end he becomes completely bold and offers pieces of meat from his mouth. The same thing is sometimes repeated by brave spectators-tourists and even local residents, who also often come to watch this “show”!
You don't need to buy a tour or reserve a seat in the audience to see him feed the hyenas. It’s enough just to come to the feeding place, take pictures, watch or even take part yourself, and then at the end give the old man money for a new portion of meat...
Having arrived in Harar, we could not miss such an unusual “entertainment”. On the very first evening, having found out where and what time the feeding took place, we took a tuk-tuk and went to a night meeting with the hyenas...

2. How and when this old man came up with the idea of ​​feeding hyenas under the wary and enthusiastic gaze of tourists, no one knows, but rumors about this fun gradually spread across the Internet and now some even specially go to Harar in order to see feeding hyenas with their own eyes.
If you have such a desire, remember where and what time to find this place.
Both the old man and the hyenas come to their feeding place around 8 pm, when it gets very dark. Finding it on your own is not very easy without knowing the city, but it is possible. If you are staying in a new city, you need to completely cross the old one, exit through the gate at the end of the market and turn off the cobblestone road onto a dirt road that branches off to the right from the main road. Then, without turning, drive about a kilometer towards the savannah and the road will lead directly to a place dimly lit either by the headlights of a car with tourists or by an old man’s lantern. But it’s better not to tempt fate on a completely dark road, but to take a tuk-tuk, immediately check whether the driver knows where the hyenas are feeding and pay him 100 birr for the round trip, as well as waiting until it’s all over.

3. We just got to the very beginning, besides us there was another jeep with three foreigners who had come to Harar specifically for this “show”.
At first everything happens quite boringly. The old man squats down in the light of headlights or a lantern, places a basket of meat in front of him and begins to call the hyenas with cries known only to him.

4. True, there is no particular need to call them, the flock is already accustomed to easy prey and every evening waits for him in this place, burning with hungry eyes from the darkness. At first they are hesitant to come close, checking the situation around them, and then gradually they become bolder and come closer...
The old man pries the meat with a small twig and throws the meat a little to the side so that the animals become bolder and come closer

5. Some, especially brave ones, do not hesitate to remove meat directly from the rod in the hands of the old man

6. Seeing this, their relatives become more and more bold. In general, it’s amazing how after many months of daily feeding here, they still don’t trust and every time they behave like it’s the first time.

7. The older man’s younger assistant risks hand-feeding meat.

8. While taking another shot, I suddenly heard breathing at my side... The hyena carefully examined me, creeping up from the side. I felt somehow uneasy. She couldn’t stand the direct gaze, immediately turning her eyes to the side. But what kind of thoughts were in her brain is not known...

9. Her other relatives were approaching from the darkness. It's time to go back to the spot of light, it's safe there. By the way, as soon as one of the tourists blocked the light of the jeep’s headlight, the old man’s assistant immediately asked not to do this. Apparently, for good reason...

10. The old man is becoming bolder, and so are the hyenas. At some point, one of them came up behind him and stood with her front paws on his shoulders, pulling a piece of meat from the rod from behind his head.

11. Confrontation of two forces. A man who subjugates nature...

12. ... and nature, which still remains beyond the control of man

13. I look at hyenas... no matter what anyone says, they are still quite unpleasant animals

14. Photos, of course, do not convey the sounds with which these animals ate and figured out who should take the next piece of meat, but in the video at the end of the post you can see everything well

16. The first tourist dares to take a place next to the old man. The hyena winces...

17. But he doesn’t refuse meat...

18. And then the “show” with hyenas jumping on the back. The old man deliberately turns his back to them and lifts the meat on a twig above his shoulder. It is unknown who is more afraid, the hyena or himself...
It looks like a hyena. She does this very timidly. But you can be sure that in the desert, in the dark, a pack of hyenas will not be at all afraid of you.

19. One of the tourists also becomes bold and “gives” his back to the hyena. The old man is in control. If an incident suddenly happens, he will lose his income and, what good, he will end up in prison.

20. The whole “performance” lasts about 15 minutes. The old man gives the last pieces of meat to the hyenas very reluctantly, teasing them. After all, tourists only at this point become bolder and want to try to take at least some photo of themselves with hyenas in the background

22. The old man throws the last pieces of meat onto the sand, leaving the feast field...

Well, as a clear example of how everything happens and how hyenas fight screamingly for a piece of meat, in a one-minute video...

Travel partner - air ticket search service

The spotted hyena is a predatory mammal of the hyena family. This is the most common member of the Crocuta species. They are also known as the laughing orderlies of the African open spaces.

Description of the spotted hyena

These representatives of the fauna are famous for their bad character. “People” consider them to be aggressive, cowardly animals that feed on carrion. Is this deserved? A traveler with a lack of experience in Africa faces many dangers. The spotted hyena is one of them. More often they attack in flocks dark time days. Therefore, woe to the guest who did not light a fire and stock up on wood for the whole night.

This is interesting! Research shows that the spotted hyena's social intelligence is on par with some primate species. Their mental development is one step higher than other predators, due to the structure of the frontal cortex of the brain.

It is believed that the ancestors of the spotted hyena branched off from the true hyena (striped or brown) during the Pliocene era, 5.332 million to 1.806 million years ago. The spotted ancestors of hyenas, with developed social behavior, were forced by increased pressure from rivals to “learn” to work as a team. They began to occupy larger territories. This is also due to the fact that migrating animals often became their prey. The evolution of hyena behavior was not without the influence of lions - their direct enemies. Practice has shown that it is easier to survive by forming prides - communities. This helped them hunt and defend their territories more efficiently. As a result, their numbers increased.

According to the fossil record, the first species appeared in the Indian Subcontinent. Spotted hyenas colonized the Middle East. Since then, the spotted hyena's habitat, as well as its appearance, have changed slightly.

Appearance

The length of the spotted hyena ranges from 90 to 170 cm, depending on gender, development and age, height – 85-90 cm. The hyena’s body is covered with short, coarse hair with undercoat. The long coat covers only the neck, creating the appearance of a light mane. The body color is pale brown with a darkened muzzle, similar to a mask. The spotted hyena's fur is covered with dark spots. In some individuals, in the area of ​​the back of the head it has a slightly reddish tint. The hyena's body has a slanted body with high shoulders and low hips. Their large, round body stands on relatively thin gray paws, each with four toes. The hind legs are slightly shorter than the front legs. Large round ears are set high on the head. The spotted hyena's muzzle shape is short and wide with a thick neck, similar in appearance to that of a dog.

Sexual dimorphism is pronounced in the appearance and behavior of spotted hyenas. Females are significantly larger than males due to excess testosterone. Females have more of it than males. On average, female spotted hyenas are 10 kg heavier than males and have a more muscular body. They are also much more aggressive.

We should also talk about her voice. The spotted hyena is capable of making up to 10-12 different sounds, differentiated as signals for relatives . Laughter, similar to a prolonged howl, is used for communication between individuals. Animals can greet each other using moans and squeals. You can also hear "giggling", howling and growling from them. For example, a low growl with a closed mouth symbolizes aggression. A hyena can make such a sound to a pack when a lion approaches.

The reaction to the same signals from different individuals can also be different. The inhabitants of the flock react to the cries of males “reluctantly”, with a delay, and to the sounds made by the female - immediately.

Lifestyle

Spotted hyenas live in large clans, from 10 to 100 individuals. These are mostly females; they form a so-called matriarchal clan led by an alpha female. They mark their territory and defend it from other hyenas. There is a strict hierarchy within the clan among females who compete with each other for social position. Females dominate males through aggressive displays. Females are divided according to age. Older ones are considered the main ones, they eat first, and produce an order of magnitude more offspring. The rest do not have such privileges, but are still in the hierarchy one step above the males.

Males also have some division according to similar features. Dominant males have greater access to females, but they all worship the “women” of the pack. Due to this harsh state of affairs, some males often move to other flocks to breed.

This is interesting! Spotted hyenas have a complex greeting ritual involving sniffing and licking each other's genitals. The spotted hyena raises its hind paw to become acquainted so that another individual can sniff it. These highly socialized mammals are masters of the most complex social structure primates.

Different clans can wage war against each other in the struggle for territory. Rivalry among spotted hyenas is expressed in a harsh form. They behave differently with their own children. The cubs are born in a communal den. Siblings of the same sex will fight for dominance, biting each other and sometimes inflicting fatal wounds. The winner will dominate the rest of the offspring until he dies. Offspring of the opposite sex do not compete with each other.

How long does a spotted hyena live?

IN natural environment habitat, the spotted hyena lives for about 25 years, in captivity it can live up to forty.

Range, habitats

Spotted hyena individuals choose savannas as their habitat, which are rich in animals included in their favorite diet. They can also be found in semi-deserts, open forests, dense dry forests, and mountain forests up to 4000m in height. They avoid thick tropical forests and deserts. You can meet them in Africa from the Cape of Good Hope to the Sahara.

Spotted hyena diet

The main food of the spotted hyena is meat.. Previously, it was believed that their diet consisted only of carrion - the remains of animals underfed by other predators. This is far from true; spotted hyenas are primarily hunters. They get about 90% of their food by hunting. Hyenas go fishing alone or as part of a pack led by a female leader. They most often hunt large herbivores. For example, gazelles, buffalos, zebras, wild boars, giraffes, rhinoceroses and hippopotamuses. They can also feed on small game, livestock and carrion.

This is interesting! Despite well-developed hunting skills, they are not picky eaters. These animals will not disdain even a rotten elephant. Hyenas have become the dominant predator in Africa.

Spotted hyenas primarily hunt at night, but are sometimes active during the day. They travel a lot in search of prey. The spotted hyena can reach speeds of about 65 kilometers per hour, which gives it the ability to keep up with a herd of antelope or other animals and capture its prey. A powerful bite helps a hyena overcome a large animal. A single bite to the neck can sever major blood vessels in the victim. After capture, other animals in the pack help gut the prey. Males and females may fight over food. As a rule, the female wins the fight.

The powerful jaws of the spotted hyena can even cope with the thick femur of a large animal. The stomach also digests everything that enters it, from horns to hooves. For this reason, the feces of this animal often have White color. If the prey is too large, the hyena may hide some of it for later.

Natural enemies

Spotted hyenas are at odds with. This is almost their only and constant enemy. Of the total deaths of spotted hyenas, 50% die from the fangs of a lion. Often it is a matter of protecting one's own borders, sharing food and water. This is how it happened in nature. Spotted hyenas will kill lions, and lions will kill spotted hyenas. During the dry season, drought or famine, lions and hyenas are always at war with each other over territory.

This is interesting! The fight between hyenas and lions is tough. It often happens that hyenas attack defenseless lion cubs or old individuals, for which they are attacked in return.

In the struggle for food and primacy, victory goes to the group of animals whose numbers predominate. Also, spotted hyenas, like any other animal, can be exterminated by humans.