Zebra foals are born with stripes yes, but with black and white stripes, no. Plains and mountain zebras live in stable, closed family groups or harems consisting of one stallion, several mares, and their offspring. [15][16] Molecular evidence supports zebras as a monophyletic lineage. Grooming usually occurs between mothers and foals and between stallions and mares. Thank you for signing up to Live Science. [39] Captive zebras have been bred with horses and donkeys; these are known as zebroids. E. zebra. [21] A 2017 mitochondrial DNA study placed the Eurasian E. ovodovi and the subgenus Sussemionus lineage as closer to zebras than to asses. Human intervention has fragmented zebra ranges and populations. [28], Among plains and mountain zebras, the adult females mate only with their harem stallion, while in Grévy's zebras, mating is more promiscuous and the males have larger testes for sperm competition. As they mature the brown darkens into a black. Zebras have been popular in photography, with some wildlife photographers describing them as the most photogenic animal. Zebras also have complex patterns around the eyes and the lower jaw. [26][23] Various mutations of the fur have been documented, from mostly white to mostly black. There was one at the North Carolina Zoo. For each species there is a point in embryonic development where the stripes are perpendicular to the dorsal and spaced 0.4 mm (0.016 in) apart. The young zebra gets its nutrition from its mother's milk and will continue to nurse throughout its first year. The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) lists the Grévy's zebra as endangered, the mountain zebra as vulnerable and the plains zebra as near-threatened. Among harem-holding species, this behaviour has otherwise only been observed in primates such as the gelada and the hamadryas baboon. The mountain zebra is found in South Africa, Namibia and Angola. Members of a harem nip and scrape along the neck, withers, and back with their teeth and lips. [8][28][88], Females of these species benefit as males give them more time for feeding, protection for their young, and protection from predators and harassment by outside males. [19] Horses split from asses and zebras around 4 mya, and equines entered Eurasia around 3 mya. [45] During embryonic development, the stripes appear at eight months, but the patterns may be determined at three to five weeks. Stallions form and expand their harems by recruiting young mares from their natal (birth) harems. By Social grooming strengthens social bonds in plains and mountain zebras. For example, ears flattened back means trouble. The family stallion takes up the rear. [94], Zebras have been featured in African art and culture for millennia. Equiferus appears to have entered into Portuguese as ezebro or zebro, which was originally a name for a mysterious (possibly feral) equine in the wilds of the Iberian Peninsula during the Middle Ages. Zebras are recognizable to anyone as the black and white striped animal. [92], With their distinctive black-and-white stripes, zebras are among the most recognisable mammals. Young of both sexes leave their natal groups as they mature; females are usually herded by outside males to be included as permanent members of their harems. Their thick bodies make them look like mules with stripes. [7], Zebras are classified in the genus Equus (known as equines) along with horses and asses. When zebras stand together, it is harder for predators to determine how many zebras are in the group. (240 to 372 kg), according to the University of Michigan Museum of Zoology. E. quagga Their elongated, slender legs end in a single spade-shaped toe covered in a hard hoof. [107] In the early 20th century, German colonial officers in German East Africa tried to use zebras for both driving and riding, with limited success. [87], Zebra species have two basic social structures. [108], As of 2016–2019, the IUCN Red List of mammals lists the Grévy's zebra as endangered, the mountain zebra as vulnerable and the plains zebra as near-threatened. [81], Zebras are preyed on mainly by lions. Harems travel in a consistent filing order with the high-ranking mares and their offspring leading the groups followed by the next-highest ranking mare and her offspring, and so on. [28], When meeting for the first time, or after they have separated, individuals may greet each other by rubbing and sniffing their noses followed by rubbing their cheeks, moving their noses along their bodies and sniffing each other's genitals. [9], Attempts to domesticate zebras were largely unsuccessful. [84] The zebra can reach a speed of 68.4 km/h (42.5 mph) compared to 57.6 km/h (35.8 mph) for the lion, but maximum acceleration is respectively 18 km/h (11 mph) and 34.2 km/h (21.3 mph). The largest zebra is the Grevy's zebra, according to the San Diego Zoo. The 'black' stripes on Zebras can range from shades of brown to black in some species. ", "Lessons for conservation management: Monitoring temporal changes in genetic diversity of Cape mountain zebra (, "The status of Namibia's Hartmann's zebra", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Zebra&oldid=984073578, Wikipedia indefinitely semi-protected pages, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, Modern range of the three living zebra species. [26][28] Plains zebras have been recorded travelling 500 km (310 mi) between Namibia and Botswana, the longest land migration of mammals in Africa. The stability of the group remains even when the family stallion dies or is displaced. [78] Mountain zebra bachelor groups may also include young females that have recently left their natal group, as well as old males they have lost their harems. Mares may wander through several territories but remain in one when they have young. The largest zebra is the Grevy's zebra, according to the San Diego Zoo. [8] The plains zebra and mountain zebra were traditionally placed in the subgenus Hippotigris (C. H. Smith, 1841) in contrast to the Grévy's zebra which was considered the sole species of subgenus Dolichohippus (Heller, 1912). The eyes of zebras are at the sides and far up the head, which allows them to s… [115] The last captive quagga, a female in Amsterdam's Natura Artis Magistra zoo, lived there from 9 May 1867 until it died on 12 August 1883. [8][28][88] With the plains zebra, the males in a bachelor group have strong bonds and have a linear dominance hierarchy. [26] The call of the Grévy's zebra has been described as "something like a hippo's grunt combined with a donkey's wheeze", while the mountain zebra is relatively silent. [8] Living in an arid environment, Grévy's zebras have longer nursing intervals and do not drink water until they are three months old. Zebra stripes come in different patterns, unique to each individual. New York, Its stripes have symbolised the joining of male and female and at the ruined city of Great Zimbabwe, zebra stripes decorate what is believed to be a domba, a premarital school meant to initiate girls into adulthood. Though they all live in Africa, each species of zebra has its own home area. (240 to 372 kg), according to the University of Michigan Museum of Zoology.Plains zebras are 3.6 t… [77] Plains zebras are more water-dependent and live in more mesic environments than other species. Adult plains zebras have stripes that also can be black or brown, and some are known to have what is called a “shadow” stripe—a brown color in the white area between the darker stripes. Males have spade-shaped canines, which can be used as weapons in fighting. In Rome, zebras are recorded to have pulled chariots during gladiator games starting in the reign of Caracalla (198 to 217 AD). [36][33], Non-African equines that may have been basal to zebras include E. sansaniensis of Eurasia (circa 2.5 mya) and E. namadicus (circa 2.5 mya) and E. sivalensis (circa 2.0 mya) of the Indian subcontinent. The difference in timing is thought to be responsible for the differences in the striping patterns of the different species. [46] There have even been morphs with white spots on dark backgrounds. The belly and legs are white when unstriped, but the muzzle is dark and the skin underneath the coat is uniformly black. Alina Bradford - Live Science Contributor The Red List also lists Hartmann's zebra (as a subspecies of mountain zebra) as vulnerable. They seldom wander 10–12 km (6.2–7.5 mi) from a water source. [9][10][11] Groves and Bell (2004) placed all three species in the subgenus Hippotigris. The Grevy's zebra has a population of just 1,966 to 2,447, according to IUCN. [3][4], The word "zebra" was traditionally pronounced with a long initial vowel, but over the course of the 20th century the pronunciation with the short initial vowel became the norm in the UK and the Commonwealth. [91] A stallion may look after a foal in his territory to ensure that the mother stays, though it may not be his. [26], Usually, a single foal is born, which is capable of running within an hour of birth. [8][90] Oestrus in female zebras lasts five to ten days; physical signs include frequent urination, flowing mucus, and swollen, everted (inside out) labia. If you every spot a zebra that appears to be brown in coloring, you are looking at … [8] A newborn zebra will follow anything that moves, so new mothers prevent others from approaching their foals while imprinting their own striping pattern, scent and vocalisation on them. The zebra also gained a reputation for being ill-tempered and kicked at visitors. The most dominant males establish territories near watering holes, where more sexually receptive females gather. A lion has to surprise a zebra within the first six seconds of breaking cover. You will receive a verification email shortly. [47] Albino zebras have been recorded in the forests of Mount Kenya, with the dark stripes being blonde. [105] However, zebras have been trained and tamed throughout history. Once the foals are old enough to travel, they and their mothers move on. [110][118], The Quagga Project An organisation that selectively breeds zebras to recreate the hair coat pattern of the quagga, Black and white striped animals in the horse family, CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (, International Union for Conservation of Nature, State Museum of Natural History Karlsruhe, "Mitochondrial phylogenomics of modern and ancient equids", "A rapid loss of stripes: The evolutionary history of the extinct quagga", "Mitochondrial‐DNA timetable and the evolution of, "Mitochondrial DNA evolution in the genus, Transactions of the Royal Society of South Africa, "Pliocene and Pleistocene equids: palaeontology versus molecular biology", "The Equidae from Cooper's D, an early Pleistocene fossil locality in Gauteng, South Africa", "Complete mitochondrial genome of an extinct, "Hold Your Zorses: The sad truth about animal hybrids", "Extremely Rare 'Blonde' Zebra Photographed", Biological Journal of the Linnean Society, "Benefits of zebra stripes: behaviour of tabanid flies around zebras and horses", "How the zebra got its stripes: a problem with too many solutions", "Experimental evidence that stripes do not cool zebras", "Polarotactic tabanids find striped patterns with brightness and/or polarization modulation least attractive: an advantage of zebra stripes", "Cows painted with zebra-like striping can avoid biting fly attack", "Striped bodypainting protects against horseflies", "A newly discovered wildlife migration in Namibia and Botswana is the longest in Africa", "Memory, not just perception, plays an important role in terrestrial mammalian migration", "Biomechanics of predator–prey arms race in lion, zebra, cheetah and impala", "Sperm competition and variation in zebra mating behavior". Staying in a territory offers a female protection from harassment by outside males, as well as access to a renewable resource.
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