While highly unusual, spotted hyenas are not as anomalous as they appear to be at first glance. Rather, they are at the extreme end of a continuum of female mammals with masculine characteristics. One-quarter of mammalian families contain species in which females are larger than males, and there are other female mammals with genitals that are masculinized to some degree. For instance, spider monkeys have a large, pendulous clitoris and the European mole has an elongated penis-like clitoris. Except for when they are ready to mate, female spotted hyenas completely dominate the adult males that join their clan.
Males typically skirt the edges of kill sites, snatching scraps dropped by females.
Aggression is a way of life for female spotted hyenas. While many such displays are just meant to show who's boss, subordinates sometimes sustain considerable damage. Subordinate females often initiate greetings and this is the only known case of an erection being a submissive gesture. On the rare occasions when the aggression escalates to fighting, the resulting damage may be severe enough to destroy or seriously compromise the reproductive competence of the injured party. The big questions about spotted hyenas are obvious.