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| By: Associated Press |
| Published: November 17, 2005 |
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A scientific study of the habits of a wild hyena ended in tragedy when it was run over and killed by a car, researchers said Thursday.
Nira, a female striped hyena, was under observation by scientists in a study of predatory animals for two years, Israel's longest-running research on the animal.
The hyena was crossing a highway south of the Israeli town of Beit Shemesh, in the hills near Jerusalem, when it was struck and killed.
Nira largely ignored people, including the Israeli scientists observing her, researchers said, but her indifference to the human world may have been her undoing. They said animals are accustomed to traffic and do not feel threatened by road noise.
"A traveling car is not a threat for them because they hear it all the time," said ecologist Haim Berger. "To them, it doesn't seem like danger -- only lights and noise."
The road was lightly traveled, and data showed Nira crossed it often without any problems. "Still, one car is enough, and this time she didn't manage to get across," Berger said.
It is not the first time the predators in the study have fallen prey to automobiles. So far, four of the 80 animals tracked met their ends as roadkill. |
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