But clan members sometimes deliberately set off in packs to hunt specific quarry, such as zebras. More often, what look like pack hunts begin as chases by 1 or 2 hyenas that others passed en route join. Pitched battles between rival hyena clans are likely when kills are made near borders. Maturation at 3 years, females later than males. When hyenas mate, only the male has an erection-the female's phallus is slack, the prepuce a wrinkled ring around the enlarged urethra.
Female dominance imposes unusual diffidence and patience on males.
Their obvious fear of female aggression makes courtship an often amusing spectacle. Long gestation results in unusually precocious offspring. Two to 6 weeks after whelping inside the entrance of an unused aardvark or other burrow, other transports young to a communal den containing youngsters of different ages. Weaning takes several months beginning at 1 year, marked by frequent tantrums. Yearlings tag along on hunts but rarely become competent before 1.5 years.