What is the difference between hyenas and wolves, both of the canine family?

They are both social animals, but wolves and hyenas are very different in appearance and living environment. Let’s not mention these obvious things for now. Today we will mainly talk about the differences between the two teeth. Because of their different food sources and hunting methods, although wolves and hyenas are both highly social carnivores that live in groups, their tooth shapes are not exactly the same. They can be said to have their own merits.

Wolves

First of all, wolves are "highly intelligent" hunters among carnivorous animals. Their mandibles are thin and long, full of streamlined grace, and the canine teeth are located at the end of the mandible. The bite speed is fast but the force is small. The lower jaw and the sharp canine teeth cooperate with each other to bite the prey's thigh or ribs tightly when hunting, knocking it to the ground with the help of inertial force. At the same time, as top killers with a high degree of socialization, hunting activities are usually carried out in wolf packs, each performing its own duties. Multiple wolves attack at the same time from different angles, often leaving prey with no way to escape and making it difficult to prevent. This kind of careful planning can hunt prey much larger than itself, so each member can get more meat. The edges of the molars are as sharp as a butcher's boning knife and can easily tear the fascia between bones and flesh. At the same time, they are strong enough to help grind some small bones.

Hyenas also hunt as a group, but their jaw structure is not consistent with that of wolves. Hyena's lower jaw is short and stocky, its canine teeth are shorter than those of wolves, and the edges of its molars are not as sharp as those of wolves. Hyena's teeth are wide, hard, and have a dome, which is used more for grinding bones in order to suck out marrow. Although the bite speed is slow, the bite force is strong, so hyenas are better at chewing rather than tearing like wolves.

Hyena