Skip to main content
990 Featured Specimen
Yellow-spotted hyrax

Details

Yellow-spotted hyrax

Heterohyrax brucei

Size
30–50 cm · 1.3–4.5 kg
Diet
Herbivore
Activity
Diurnal
Sociality
Social
Lifespan

Yellow-spotted hyrax is a mammal associated with savannas and mountains. It is herbivorous and social. It remains widespread in parts of its range, but local habitat change still matters.

Range

Habitat range map
Native range Occasional / Transient
AfrotropicalAfrotropicalAfrotropicalAfrotropical

Map: Ecoregions 2017 © RESOLVE (CC BY 4.0) · Natural Earth (PD)

Details

Habitat

Its range is represented here by the Afrotropics, where it uses savannas and mountains. Mobile species may shift habitat use with season, breeding sites, or food availability.

Appearance

Typical length 30-50 cm, weight 1.3 kg-4.5 kg. It has a small agile rodent-like build, with proportions shaped by its habitat and mode of movement.

Behavior

It is mostly active by day and social. Spacing, group size, and visibility can change with season, feeding conditions, and breeding activity.

Feeding

It is herbivorous. Food choice and foraging style are tied to life in savannas and mountains, so movements often follow available food resources.

Reproduction

As a mammal, it gives birth to live young, and the mother nurses them in cover or within the social group.

Notes

Recorded scientifically as Heterohyrax brucei. It remains widespread in parts of its range, but local habitat change still matters. In this guide, size, habitat, and activity pattern are useful first clues for recognition.