Proteles

Proteles is a genus of hyenas, family Hyaenidae, formerly placed in its own family Protelidae, containing the aardwolf, traditionally treated as the single species Proteles cristatus, though recent genetic analysis has led some taxonomists to recognize a second species, Proteles septentrionalis; it occurs in two separate populations across East and Southern Africa. The smallest living member of Hyaenidae at 7 to 10 kilograms, it has black vertical stripes on a yellowish coat and a long mane, and feeds almost entirely on termites, capable of lapping up as many as 300,000 in a single night with its specialized tongue, unlike its meat-eating hyena relatives.