The spotted hyena’s cadaver in Elba Protected Area. (Courtesy of the Author. Mammalia/De Gruyter Brill)

CAIRO — In a startling development that has caught the attention of wildlife researchers across North Africa, a spotted hyena was documented in Egypt for the first time since the species vanished from the region over 5,000 years ago. This unexpected return of one of Africa’s most notorious predators raises intriguing questions about changing climate patterns, human-wildlife conflict, and the remarkable adaptability of these often-misunderstood carnivores.

Spotted hyenas, which can weigh up to 190 pounds and are known for their distinctive laughing vocalizations, have long dominated the African savanna as apex predators. While they currently thrive across much of sub-Saharan Africa, their presence in Egypt had been confined to ancient history, until now.

Spotted hyena ‘beyond anything we had expected to find’

In February 2024, local pastoralists in Egypt’s Elba Protected Area encountered something their ancestors hadn’t seen in millennia: a spotted hyena preying on their livestock.

“My first reaction was disbelief until I checked the photos and videos of the remains,” said the study’s lead author, Dr. Adbullah Nagy from Al-Azhar University, in a statement. “Seeing the evidence, I was completely taken aback. It was beyond anything we had expected to find in Egypt.”

Located just 30 kilometers north of the Sudanese border, Elba Protected Area represents a unique ecological transition zone where Egypt’s arid landscape meets the more tropical environments of Sudan. This remote region, characterized by sandy plains dotted with rocky hills, has recently experienced notably higher rainfall than usual, transforming typically parched landscapes into temporary meadows that attract both wildlife and livestock.

Over two days, the hyena killed two goats belonging to local herders in an area called Wadi Yahmib. The local people, renowned for their tracking abilities, followed the predator’s trail and ultimately killed it by hitting it with a pickup truck. While this particular animal’s journey ended tragically, its very presence hints at broader environmental changes that may be reshaping the region’s wildlife dynamics.

How did the hyena arrive in Egypt?

Using satellite imagery and vegetation analysis, Nagy and his co-authors discovered that the area between northern Sudan and southeastern Egypt has experienced significantly higher rainfall and vegetation growth over the past five years compared to previous decades. This “greening” effect has created what scientists call a potential corridor, or a pathway of relatively hospitable terrain that wildlife might use to expand their range.

Modern farming practices may have also played an unintended role in facilitating the hyena’s northward journey. Local herders have increasingly adopted free-range grazing methods for their livestock, allowing animals to roam more widely in search of natural forage rather than keeping them confined and providing supplementary feed. This shift in pastoral practices has effectively created a mobile food source that predators might follow.

Perhaps most intriguingly, the hyena’s appearance coincides with ongoing political instability in Sudan. Historical records show that during times of human crisis, spotted hyenas sometimes expand their range and even engage in anthropophagy — the consumption of human remains. While this particular individual showed no signs of such behavior, its presence highlights the complex ways that both environmental and human factors can influence wildlife movements.

‘Mystery that demands further research’

The reappearance of spotted hyenas in Egypt faces significant challenges. Unlike parts of the Horn of Africa where people have coexisted with these predators for generations and learned to tolerate them as natural garbage disposers, southeastern Egyptian communities have no cultural history of living alongside spotted hyenas. For pastoralists in this region, livestock losses can be financially devastating, making conflict with large predators particularly problematic.

“The fact that the corridor area has become less environmentally harsh, offering easier passage along ‘the highway’, may explain how the hyena reached this far north,” says Nagy. “However, the motivation for its extensive journey into Egypt is still a mystery that demands further research.”

While this single hyena’s journey ended in human-wildlife conflict, its unprecedented appearance may signal the beginning of broader ecological changes in northeastern Africa. As climate patterns shift and human activities reshape landscapes, wildlife professionals may need to prepare for more unexpected animal appearances in places where they haven’t been seen for thousands of years.