Rock hyrax | adibarocas

Rock hyraxes are herbivorous social animals that inhabit rocky outcrops and gorges throughout sub-saharan Africa and the Middle East. The Ein-Gedi (Israel) rock hyrax population has been the subject of a long-term research established in 1998, led by Eli Geffen, Lee Koren and Amiyaal Ilany from the Tel Aviv and Bar-Ilan Universities.

In my Master's thesis, I studied the social structure of rock hyraxes and how their survival is affected by their social environment.

The findings, summarized in this Plos ONE paper, suggest that the social environment and the size of the group individuals hyraxes belong to have effects on their life expectancy. Animals from smaller groups and groups which were more socially equal, lived longer.

During spring and summer, Eing-Gedi rock hyraxes are marked and regulary observed with binoculars. Researchers register all social interactions and also record every vocalization. Male hyraxes produce lengthy "songs" that have complex structure. We think these vocalizations communicate the male's quality and social status and help females assess the available mating partners in their area. We found out that males put more effort in their songs when other individuals are watching.