Fence behaviors
The abundance of quick cross and bounce behaviors captured by the barrier behavior analysis, as opposed to walking along the fence or exhibiting average movements near the fence, implies that hyenas may perceive boundaries as risky in this rapidly developing area, and may approach the fence only out of need. When they reach the fence, if they cannot cross, they appear to immediately move away (i.e., bounce), and if the fence is permeable, they cross quickly. While McInturff et al. (2020) concluded that fences can create interspecific “ecological winners and losers”, the hyena populations in this region may be a combination of both, depending on the individual, season, land management type, or other factors.
Though our study was able to assess movements of hyenas representing 5 clans, the sample size for assessing fence navigation was limited since not every collared hyena approached the fence lines. Our supplementary camera trap analyses of individual hyenas at the fence line revealed hyenas are approaching the fence and possibly crossing in and out of the national park in extraordinary numbers. Previous studies have suggested that social rank, age, and sex influence spotted hyena risk-taking behavior (Belton et al. 2018; Green et al. 2018) and space use (Boydston et al. 2003), yet our analysis shows that individuals spanning different demographics and social ranks may be crossing in and out of the national park. While evidence suggests these behaviors may be caused by resource limitations within this relatively small protected area, further research is needed to assess the ecological factors driving these behaviors.