Review author: “ZooVita”
Despite their appearance, zebras are not simply black and white. These are strong, energetic animals that are full of contrasts: wayward and playful, sociable and reserved, persistent and vulnerable. Their life in the herd can be difficult, but at the same time it is their protection.
Zebras are prey for predators, but they in no way reduce the number of flora in terms of damage. Get to know them a little better and you'll discover that the zebra's world is truly a colorful one!
Brief description of the zebra animal
- Class: mammals
- Lifespan: 25 years
- Pregnancy from 12 to 14 months
- Number of cubs at birth: 1
- Birth weight 25 to 40 kg
- Mature age: 3 to 6 years
- Size: height from 1.3 m to 1.5 m
- Weight from 250 to 400 kg
Natural enemies
Who attacks the zebra? Her main enemy is the African lion. The zebra is also attacked by other African predators - cheetahs, leopards, tigers; at a watering hole it is threatened by an alligator; babies are often killed by hyenas.
Nature, in order to protect the zebra, awarded it with excellent eyesight and hearing. In addition, the zebra is very shy and careful. When the herd is grazing or resting at a watering hole, one or two striped horses are on duty, carefully looking around and listening. At the slightest alarm, they give a signal and the entire herd runs away. A zebra gallops at a speed of 65 km/hour, it zigzags no worse than a hare, abruptly changing direction and not allowing the predator to grab it.
To protect foals, adult zebras rear, bite and kick.
General information about zebras
These are large ungulates created for high-speed and long-distance migrations. The zebra animal is endowed with an impeccable set of organs of charm; they can accelerate up to 56 kilometers/hour. For defense, they use a powerful blow with their hooves, which can injure any predator.
Typically, the leading male of the herd, called a stallion, sounds the alarm if danger is spotted and remains at the back of the group to protect himself from predators if necessary, while the mares (females) and foals (young stock) run away.
Zebras often trot when moving to new pastures, which is quite fast for them; as for long distances, they cover them with a calm gait.
Hard hooves are designed to withstand the impact of your body weight and run easily over rocky ground. At night, zebras go to bed, and someone stands guard so as not to be ambushed.
Captivity
Most often, an animal in captivity is in a zoo and its maintenance is completely similar to caring for wild horses:
- kept in stalls protected from weather;
- They offer regular horse feed for food;
- control overeating.
Animals should not be given human food, especially bread, corn flakes, chips, or sugar cubes. Such nutrition provokes a number of diseases and shortens the life of an individual.
Zoo workers periodically trim the hooves, since in captivity an animal cannot fully grind them off on its own, which leads to severe suffering and pain.
They try to keep adult males separately so that they do not behave aggressively towards each other. Hybrids are used on the farm like ordinary horses or donkeys and are kept in the same way.
Not only representatives of the horse family are called zebra. These could be exotic fish and the popular snail, which received the prefix zebra to their names because of their unusual, bright color.
Appearance of a zebra
This is one of the most common questions about zebras. So what's with the stripes? They are believed to have white fur with black (sometimes brown) stripes. However (there has to be a catch, right?), some zebras are born with genetic variations that make them all black with white stripes, or mostly dark with a striped pattern on only part of their fur. And, as it turns out, zebras have black skin under their hair. So it all depends on how you look at it!
So why stripes? They serve as a kind of protection from predators! When zebras are grouped together, their combined stripes make it difficult for a lion or leopard to choose one zebra to chase. Because each individual's stripes are unique, their stripes may also have a social purpose, helping zebras recognize each other.
The zebra's striped fur is believed to dissipate more than 70 percent of incoming heat, preventing the animal from overheating in the African sun. This is due to the fact that the air moves at different speeds along the light-absorbing and reflective stripes, so the zebra creates its own cooling air currents.
It may seem like all zebras are the same, but there are three different species: plains, mountain and Grevy's zebra. Different species of zebras have different types of stripes, ranging from narrow to wide. In fact, the further south you travel across the African plains, the further apart the zebra stripes spread!
The photo of a zebra clearly shows their characteristic shape - a large head, a strong neck, long legs, a stripe on the back along the spine and along the tail with tassels and a bristly mane - universal. Neither the zebra nor other wild equids have a forelock.
Population and species status
Not so long ago, zebras lived across vast areas of the African continent, and their numbers did not pose any threat to populations, regardless of variety. Nowadays, the total number of these representatives of the equine family has decreased significantly. As a rule, this is due to a number of many factors that negatively affect the life activity of this animal species. Hartmann's mountain zebra now numbers about 15 thousand individuals, which indicates a reduction of almost 8 times. The Cape mountain zebra is protected.
Zebra species
Grevy's zebra
The largest, its weight ranges from 350 to 450 kilograms, and its height at the shoulders is up to 1.5 meters. The thick neck and large, round ears give Grevy's zebra a mule-like build. Grevy's zebra also has the thinnest stripes, extending all the way to the white belly; on the hind limbs the stripes are vertical to a level above the hind legs.
Mountain zebra
The mountain zebra has vertical stripes on its neck and body that extend into wider horizontal stripes on its smaller hips. It has a mesh pattern on the rump. The mountain zebra also has a distinctive dewlap on its throat that looks a bit like an Adam's apple.
Plains zebra
The most numerous and smallest of the three zebra species. Some subspecies have a different stripe pattern from all others, with brownish "shadow" stripes between black stripes on their coats.
Description and characteristics
Zebras lead a herd lifestyle. Herds consist of one male, several mares and their cubs of different ages. Sometimes zebras form large groups from several families or join herds of giraffes and antelopes.
In zebras, the care of adult animals for their growing offspring is clearly expressed: the dominant male and females protect the cubs during attacks by predators, often engaging in skirmishes with an opponent that is superior in strength.
Zebras use several types of sounds to communicate and exchange information in a herd. Depending on the situation, they can snort, growl, and utter sharp, abrupt cries, similar to the barking of a dog or the braying of a donkey.
What sounds does a zebra make?
Zebras can swim, and in case of danger they can reach speeds of up to 65 km/h.
What does it look like
The characteristic external features of zebras include the following:
| Body | Barrel-shaped, elongated. |
| Head | Proportional in size, with a relatively long neck, elongated muzzle, movable pointed ears. |
| Limbs | The hind legs are shorter than the front ones, the limbs end in a spade-shaped toe covered with a hard hoof. |
| Tail | Thin, long, with a tassel at the end. |
| Teeth | The jaws of zebras are adapted for eating grass: the front incisors are used to cut plants, and the lateral molars are used to chew them. Males have enlarged fangs, which are often used for defense during predator attacks. |
Zebras, like all equines, have a mane.
Origin of stripes
You can recognize a zebra among other equids by its characteristic striped color. The appearance of black and white stripes and their function is still an active subject of discussion among scientists. Currently, from the many versions, three main ones have been identified:
- The striped surface impairs the orientation of Tsetse flies, horseflies and other insects, as a result of which they do not have time to slow down in time before landing on the zebra's skin, hitting and bouncing off it. The theory is confirmed by the results of experiments during which striped blankets were put on horses, as well as the more intense striped color of zebras living in areas with a high concentration of insects.
- The color of white and black stripes may be one of the features of adaptation to the desert climate of Africa: during the heat of the day, white stripes reflect light, preventing the animal from overheating, and in the cold morning hours, areas covered with black wool absorb heat.
- The striped coloring confuses predators when assessing the size of a potential prey. This version is most susceptible to criticism by researchers.
Dimensions and weight
The height at the withers and weight of adult zebras depend on their variety. Savannah zebras are considered the smallest. Their maximum weight reaches 300-340 kg. Mountain zebras are slightly larger than savanna zebras, and the highest weight and height are observed in the desert species: 450 kg and 1.4 m, respectively.
A newborn foal weighs no more than 30 kg and is 75-80 cm tall.
How many years do they live
In nature, the average life expectancy of zebras is 25-30 years. Animals living in captivity live up to 35-40 years. An increase in the life cycle by 10-15 years is due to two reasons:
- Zebras often become prey to their natural enemies: cheetahs, lions, leopards, and hyenas. When attacking a herd, predators choose young animals or animals weakened by old age as victims.
- Despite the striped color that repels insects, zebras are still bitten by tsetse flies and horseflies, which not only drink blood, but also carry some life-threatening equine diseases (encephalitis, horse flu, African plague).
Zebra habitat in the wild
They have more than one habitat: Grevy's zebras live in the low-moisture grasslands of Kenya, Ethiopia and Somalia. Mountain zebras, as their name suggests, live on the rocky, arid slopes of Namibia and Angola.
Plains zebras, which are the most abundant of the three zebra species, are found from the grasslands of East Africa to the scrub forests of southern Africa. They are among the most successful and adaptable large herbivores in Africa.
A subspecies of the plains zebra, Grant's zebra is famous for its spectacular wet season migrations in the Serengeti and where the zebra lives, up to 10,000 of the animals can be seen traveling together in herds.
Zebras are herbivores and eat mainly grass, although they may also eat some leaves and stems of bushes. They graze for many hours every day, cutting off the ends of the grass with their strong front teeth. Their back teeth then crush and grind the food. When you spend so much time chewing, your teeth wear down, so they continue to grow throughout your life.
They do not live in deserts, wetlands or tropical forests, which could make them vulnerable to climate change. As the dry season sets in and the grasses die off, these animals hit the road in search of food and water to drink from. Most are considered nomadic, with no defined territories.
The exception is Grevy's zebra. Mares, their foals and immature males wander as they please. However, if food becomes scarce, stallions will temporarily leave their territories and travel with larger herds.
Nutrition
Herbivores require a significant amount of food to saturate the body with the required number of calories. The food is succulent grass cover, plant rhizomes, leaves, buds on bushes, tree bark, and any young shoots. Animals are constantly engaged in obtaining food. During the dry season, herds head out in search of pastures.
Animals have a vital need for water and need it at least once a day. Water is especially important for lactating females. In search of sources for watering, herds travel considerable distances. If rivers dry up due to the heat, zebras look for underground channels - they dig real wells, up to half a meter deep, and wait for the water to drain.
The feeding habits of various mammal species depend on the region where they live. Thus, the diet of desert zebras is dominated by roughage food with a fibrous structure, bark, and foliage. Mountain individuals feast on the soft, lush grass covering the green slopes. Zebras do not refuse juicy fruits, buds, and tender shoots.
In addition to natural grazing, tamed individuals are fed with mineral supplements and vitamins, which increases physical endurance and affects longevity.
Zebra animal lifestyle
Scratch my back and I'll scratch yours: Plains and mountain zebras are social herd animals, living in family groups with a stallion, several mares and their offspring.
At certain times of the year, these groups gather together to form loosely knit herds of up to several hundred, but family groups still remain together within these larger groups.
Grevy's zebras do not have a herd, and males and females do not have permanent relationships. Grevy's zebra stallions establish territories and mares move through them to breed and foal.
Once foals are old enough to travel, mares usually leave the stallion's protected territory to continue their nomadic lifestyle.
These mammals communicate through facial expressions and sounds. They make a loud roar or bark, or a quiet snort. The position of their ears, the degree to which their eyes are open, whether their mouths are open or their teeth are exposed all matter. Flat ears, for example, mean trouble, or better follow orders!
Zebras also strengthen their bonds by grooming each other. You can see two zebras standing face to face, apparently biting each other, but in reality they only bite each other with their teeth to pull out loose hair and scratch themselves.
Just like horses, zebras invest a lot of energy in raising their offspring. Zebra foals have soft, fluffy fur, and their stripes are usually brown and white at first. Their legs are almost the size of an adult's, they are able to walk just 20 minutes after birth and can run within an hour!
This is important because the mare needs to move with the herd in search of food and water. She can't leave the foal behind, so he must run away quickly to stay with his family.
To survive, foals must be able to recognize their mother from birth. The foal studies its mother's stripe pattern so it can follow her. Mares usually do not adopt other foals, so they will have no chance of getting food from anyone other than their mother.
Mothers are often separated from the herd a short distance so that their foals can imprint on them. Once the foal can easily identify its mother, the mare and her foal are returned to the herd for protection.
Lifestyle and character traits
Although zebras are closely related to domestic horses and donkeys, their lifestyle and habits are radically different from the lifestyle and disposition of their equid tribesmen domesticated by humans. After all, zebras had to adapt to survival on one of the harshest and most inhospitable continents, which left an imprint on the character of these animals.
African horses are not tied to one territory, and are constantly moving in search of new pastures, although they can stay for a long time in a certain place, rich in lush vegetation and natural water sources.
Social structure
Zebras lead a collective lifestyle, gathering in herds, which in turn form separate family units of large herds. There are from 10 to 15 individuals in one herd, and they consist of a mature male, 3-5 females and young foals. Groups form into herds, which sometimes number up to several hundred animals, but each herd keeps to itself.
Zebras live in small herds
Mating of zebras occurs exclusively between members of their family, and herds are often separated from the general group in order to join another herd. Actually, we can say that each herd lives its own life, feeds and goes to watering separately, and zebras gather into one huge herd only at night, during migrations or to fight off predators together.
There is a strict hierarchy within each herd. The leader of the zebra family is an adult, strong male, whose main responsibility is to ensure the protection of his personal “harem” and offspring from predatory animals. The second in status is considered the most mature and experienced mare. It is under her leadership that the herd goes to a watering hole or goes in search of new feeding places. When moving, zebras always adhere to the following order: the main female leads the procession, followed by other mares, closing the cubs in a tight ring, and the male of the herd brings up the rear.
Zebra's enemies in the wild
There are some threats - habitat loss, poaching and disease - that zebras cannot escape. With a wild population of approximately 25,000, the mountain zebra is classified as critically endangered. The Cape mountain zebra came very close to extinction as a result of hunting and competition with livestock.
In 1937, South Africa's Mountain Zebra National Park was established, with only 47 mountain zebras remaining. Now their number has increased to several hundred, most of which are still in the national park.
The critically endangered zebra population has been devastated by anthrax outbreaks, leaving its population estimated at 2,250 wild animals.
Reproduction and lifespan
The offspring becomes sexually mature at 2.5-3 years of age. Female zebras are ready to mate earlier, males later. Reproduction occurs every three years, although the observational history includes examples of annual litters. Females give birth to offspring throughout 15-18 years of their lives.
The duration of a female's pregnancy is 370 days. Most often, one foal is born, weighing approximately 30 kg. The newborn is reddish in color. From the first hours the cub shows independence - stands on its legs and sucks milk.
After a few weeks, the little zebra baby begins to nibble little by little on the young grass, but the mother’s nutrition is maintained throughout the year, as it protects the babies’ fragile bodies from infections and protects the reliable functioning of the intestines. Zebra milk is a rare pink color.
Foals are carefully protected by all adults in their families, but, nevertheless, the mortality rate of offspring from attacks by predators remains high. The life of a zebra in the natural environment lasts 30 years, unless it becomes prey to natural enemies.
In the protected conditions of national parks, domesticated zebras become record-breaking long-livers of 40 years. Zebra is an animal of Africa , but its value in the ecological system has no continental boundaries. The image of a striped inhabitant with a stubborn nature has entered into culture and history.
Photo of a zebra in the wild
Habitat
Zebra can be found exclusively on the African continent. The habitat depends on the species. Plains zebras prefer the savannas of East Africa, including the south of the mainland. Desert representatives settled in Kenya, Somalia and Ethiopia. Mountain species have reached the highlands of Namibia and South Africa, reaching altitudes of 2000 meters.
Comfortable habitats for zebras are various plains, mountains, forests and deserts. However, recently the number of these amazing animals has declined sharply and continues to decline.
What color is a zebra's milk?
Despite the fact that the well-known zebra and hippopotamus are too different both in appearance and in their lifestyle and habitat, they have one common feature, and it is quite unusual. The fact is that females feed their babies with pink milk.
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Lifestyle
All zebras are characterized by family packs led by an adult stallion. Most of this herd consists of a large number of females and small cubs. There is also an oldest mare in each pack. Males in packs are not protected, so at the age of 1 to 3 years they are forced to leave the herd and become outcasts.
Animals distinguish each other by patterns on their bodies, smell and voice. The main characteristic of zebras is sleeping while standing. In order to protect each other, all individuals of the flock gather together and sleep. In this way, they can protect themselves from attacks by other predators.
Zebras use barking and neighing to communicate with each other. Their mood can be determined by the position of their ears. In a calm state, the ears stand straight, and during periods of aggression they go back. An animal's fear can be identified by the position of its ears in front. Aggression may be shown through snorting or loud barking sounds.
What zebras can do
Classification and evolution of zebras
The zebra is a large species of horse native to the grassy plains of sub-Saharan Africa. They are the largest and most distinctive wild horses, with bodies adorned with white and black stripes, the exact arrangement of which is unique to each individual. There are three different species of zebra found in Africa: the Common Zebra (also known as the Plains Zebra and Burchell's Zebra), the Grévy's Zebra (also known as the Imperial Zebra) and the Mountain Zebra. Zebras are incredibly sociable animals that can travel great distances in search of fresh grass and water, but are under serious threat throughout much of their natural range due to increasing levels of human activity. Today, both the Grévy's zebra and the Mountain zebra are considered endangered species, and although the Common zebra is more common and abundant, some areas are experiencing steep population declines.
