"Laughing" African beast (5)
I believe the answer is:
hyena
'laughing african beast' is the definition.
(I've seen this in another clue)
This is all the clue.
(Other definitions for hyena that I've seen before include "African scavenger" , "One laughs loud" , "Carnivorous animal with howl like laughter" , "African native" , "Its howl sounds like laughter" .)