Protecting hyenas in Malawi

Did you know – hyena or hyaena are both correct spellings; hyaena comes from the Latin name of the Hyaenidae and is often used by scientists.

Born Free has long been devoted to hyenas – such complex, family animals who play a key environmental role, yet frequently misunderstood and unfairly maligned. Thanks to an important new alliance, we are delighted to be helping protect hyenas in Malawi this year, complementing our own carnivore conservation work in Kenya.  

Carnivore Research Malawi is a wonderful organisation, working tirelessly to help people and wildlife coexist in harmony, outside of protected areas in Malawi. They protect carnivores, especially hyenas, in both urban and rural environments, with the help of the latest scientific findings from their pioneering Conservation Research Centre. Like Born Free, Carnivore Research Malawi works closely with local communities to provide conservation education, and mitigate conflict through humane solutions. 

The CRM team checking a camera trap for hyena activity

Carnivore Research Malawi’s ethos is centred around promoting coexistence between carnivores and people. With a special focus on urban spotted hyenas, their Urban Hyena Research project works to study and support the conservation of hyena populations, while reducing human-wildlife conflict.  

Hyenas are fascinating and live in social groups called clans, ranging from six to 100 individuals. Interestingly, these clans are matriarchal, meaning they are led by an alpha female.  

Hyenas provide vital ecosystem services by being one of nature’s ‘cleaners’. As partial scavengers, even in urban areas, hyenas help clean up areas such as markets, slaughterhouses, streets and dumping sites.  

Surprisingly, in Lilongwe, the capital of Malawi, there is a healthy hyena population. However, living amongst human populations is not without risks and these urban hyenas can be directly targeted – threatened by poisoning, culling and trapping. Hyenas are poorly understood by many, and Carnivore Research Malawi aims to improve knowledge about hyenas and dispel myths and misunderstandings. 

Founded by Dr Emma Stone, an Associate Professor at the University of Bath with over 20 years of experience in conservation research, Carnivore Research Malawi works closely with the local community, publishing guides on how people can protect themselves and their livestock animals from hyenas. Through the creation of a wildlife assistance helpline, they provide free advice to members of the community. 

Dr Emma Stone fitting a GPS collar to a hyena

“The lack of understanding of carnivore ecology in Malawi, especially those living outside protected areas, limits our ability to conserve them and prevents coexistence,” says Dr Stone.  

“Research on how carnivores survive outside of protected areas and what causes and drives human carnivore conflict is critical for the survival of both carnivores and people. We are looking forward to working with Born Free to improve human-hyena coexistence in Malawi and learn from your experiences in Kenya.” 

Combining applied research with their outreach programmes, Carnivore Research Malawi aims to better understand hyena ecology outside protected areas and use this to reduce retaliatory killings and improve human safety. 

Alongside supporting Carnivore Research Malawi’s work, Born Free will also be learning from their vast experience, to help reduce hyena-human conflict at our own conservation projects.  

“Our focal landscapes in Kenya – the Meru Conservation Area and the Amboseli Ecosystem – are home to higher numbers of spotted hyenas than lions and leopards,” explains Born Free’s Head of Conservation Dr Nikki Tagg. “Communities regularly lose goats and sheep to hyena attacks, and this can have a huge impact on people’s livelihoods and economic stability. This can damage any tolerance of predators and prevent human-wildlife coexistence in these landscapes.” 

CRM carrying out a dental check on an anaesthetised hyena

Carnivore Research Malawi, like Born Free, advocates for the protection of individual animals as well as their populations. Their de-snaring programme works to remove deadly snares, set illegally to trap wildlife, to stop individual animal suffering. They also work with Lilongwe Wildlife Trust’s Emergency Response Unit, another Born Free partner, to provide veterinary care to hyenas caught in snares. 

Carnivore Research Malawi’s outreach programmes include capacity building for students to build knowledge and develop skills in conservation, as well as wildlife research and veterinary practice, community facilitation and a ‘women in science’ programme. 

We are thrilled that Carnivore Research Malawi has joined Born Free as a partner this year. We look forward to learning from them and supporting their vital work to help people and provide a safe future for hyenas.