Were-hyenas

Hyena people are Africa's version of the werewolf. Whole tribes may be affected by lycanthropy. Belief in Were-hyenas is so entrenched within the traditional lore of the Bornu people of north-eastern Nigeria that their language even contains a special word 'bultungin' which translates as ' I change myself into a hyena.'

A Bouda is sorcerer/blacksmith that can change into a were-hyena. It often wears an ornament from its human form, by which it can be recognized. A white hunter wrote that he once shot hyaenas wearing golden earrings. Other were-hyenas, known as Qora, were punished in the old Kingdom of Kaffa, now part of Ethiopia

Were-lions

With werecats who turn into lions, the ability is often associated with royalty. Such a being may have been a king or queen in a former life, or may be destined for leadership in this life. This quality of heroic warriorship can be seen in the lions of Tsavo, which were reputed to be kings in lion shape, attempting to repel the invading Europeans by stopping their railroad.

Were-leopards

Were-leopard traditions in West Africa center around the leopard-men societies, whose members dress in leopard skins, arm themselves with iron claws, and mutilate their enemies in emulation of the beasts into whose likeness they claim the ability to transform themselves. In the 1930's members of the Anyoto tribe belonging to a secret society of leopard men went on a killing spree in the Belgian Congo. Dressed in costumes of bark painted with black and yellow spots they stalked their enemies in the jungle slaughtering them with claw-shaped knifes.

In 1946 another group of leopard-men terrorized a village near Lagos and a year later stories appeared in London newspapers about a group of Lion-men in Tanganyika who had killed 50 victims before being captured.

In other areas, the creature is believed to be a leopard god or goddess masquerading as human. When these gods mate with humans, offspring can be produced, and these children sometimes grow up to be shapeshifters. Any of them who never transform will have other powers.

Ilimu

The ilimu of Kenya is a man-eating shapeshifter that starts out as an animal, but can shift into the form of a man.