Additional Image><div class=

Primates and Western Tree Hyraxes

Primates and Western Tree Hyraxes

Primates and Western Tree Hyraxes

Dendrohyrax dorsalis, the Western Tree Hyrax, standing on a branch
Dendrohyrax dorsalis, the Western Tree Hyrax, standing on a branch

Western Tree Hyraxes, Dendrohyrax dorsalis, are a species of Hyrax. It is one of the four species within the Dendrohyrax genus. They can be distinguished from other hyrax species by their lack of fur around their feet and snouts. Unlike other hyraxes, Western Tree hyraxes are solitary–only found in groups of two or three if any.

They live throughout Central Africa, around the rainforests of the Gulf of Guinea. It prefers moist savanna and tropical lowlands, in rocky Kopjes.

Several animals prey on the Western Tree hyrax, including eagles, leopards, hawks, servals, pythons, golden cats, and sometimes humans.

A man showing off a caught Western Tree Hyrax in Ghana.

You would assume that chimpanzees are also a predator for these animals. Strangely enough, they aren’t! While these hyraxes aren’t treated particularly well by chimps, they seem to have an interest in the animals much like ourselves.

Researchers studying a group of wild chimpanzees between 1976 and 1999, noticed two cases in which the chimps interacted with Western Tree Hyraxes in the region of Bossou, Guinea. [src]

In the first case, a young tree hyrax fell suddenly from his perch and was surrounded by the group of chimps. One of them slapped the ground near the hyrax, and poked it with a sapling. Eventually they lost interest in the animal and retreated. The hyrax also ended up escaping alive, undisturbed by the researchers.

In their other observation, they watched an adolescent female chimp carrying a Western Tree Hyrax around her group. She built a nest to set the Hyrax in, and groomed it. She went as far as to sleep with the Hyrax in that nest. Other chimps passing by would inspect the Hyrax, but none expressed much interest in the animal beyond that. The following morning she returned the Western Tree Hyrax to its original tree.

For the researchers, this highlights an interesting behavior among Chimpanzees in the region. But for hyrax lovers, it demonstrates a somewhat primal interest in these rodent-like creatures.

Hirata S, Yamakoshi G, Fujita S, Ohashi G, Matsuzawa T. Capturing and toying with hyraxes (Dendrohyrax dorsalis) by wild chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) at Bossou, Guinea. Am J Primatol. 2001 Feb;53(2):93-7. doi: 10.1002/1098-2345(200102)53:2<93::AID-AJP5>3.0.CO;2-X. PMID: 11170171.

Comments

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Merch

A List of Available Hyrax Toys
My Favorite Hyrax Sticker