Female Spotted Hyenas (Crocuta crocuta) exhibit some highly unusual anatomical and behavioral characters. The search for an explanation of these characters has given rise to a long-term collaboration among many specialties and organizations. Observation of this collaboration in turn provides a number of insights into several interesting science studies problems, including the nature of collaboration, the relationship between collaborations and research specialties, and the nature of model organisms. More generally, the collaboration raises questions about current patterns of research organization and some potential changes in them.