Why We Love Zebras

Fast Facts
Type: Mammal
Diet: Herbivore
Average lifespan in the wild: 25 years
Size: Height at the shoulder, 3.5 to 5 ft (1.1 to 1.5 m)
Weight: 440 to 990 lbs (200 to 450 kg)
Group name: Herd
                      

No animal has a more distinctive coat than the zebra. Each animal's stripes are as unique as fingerprints—no two are exactly alike—although each of the three species has its own general pattern.


Why do zebras have stripes at all? Scientists aren't sure, but many theories center on their utility as some form of camouflage. The patterns may make it difficult for predators to identify a single animal from a running herd and distort distance at dawn and dusk. Or they may dissuade insects that recognize only large areas of single-colored fur or act as a kind of natural sunscreen. Because of their uniqueness, stripes may also help zebras recognize one another.

Zebras are social animals that spend time in herds. They graze together, primarily on grass, and even groom one another.

Plains (Burchell's) zebras are the most common species. They live in small family groups consisting of a male (stallion), several females, and their young. These units may combine with others to form awe-inspiring herds thousands of head strong, but family members will remain close within the herd.

Zebras must be constantly wary of lions and hyenas. A herd has many eyes alert to danger. If an animal is attacked, its family will come to its defense, circling the wounded zebra and attempting to drive off predators.

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Zebra Protection

The Lewa Wildlife Conservancy works as a catalyst for the conservation of wildlife and its habitat. It does this through the protection and management of species, the initiation and support of community conservation and development programmes, and the education of neighbouring areas in the value of wildlife. 

                        

Grevy's Zebra
We here at Zebra Internet Cafe are serious about helping top protect endangered animals.The Grevy's Zebra is a  species critical global conservation is the . This handsome animal is confined to northern Kenya and parts of Ethiopia . Its numbers have greatly declined in unprotected areas, and it is now globally threatened with between 1,800- 2,300 remaining.


In 1977 there were 81 Grevy's on Lewa. Today, when they are in a rapid decline elsewhere, Lewa's population has reached 600. Today they number 425 on Lewa, as a result of increasing predation pressure . This figure represents 20% of the world's population - one of only three groups under protection, and the only one managed privately.


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Mountain Zebra

There are two subspecies of mountain zebra. Equus zebra is endangered and Equus zebra hartmannae is threatened.
Mountain zebras have black and white stripes all over their bodies except their stomachs, which are white. They have four one-toed hoofs. Their slender, pointed ears reach up to eight inches in length. Mountain zebras have manes of short hair that stick straight up from their necks. The stripes on their bodies continue to the mane. They also have a tuft of hair at the end of their tails.


Mountain zebras reach six to eight-and-a-half feet in length. Their tails are an additional one-and-a-half feet long. Mountain zebras weight between 530 and 820 pounds. They are four to five feet tall at the shoulder.  Equus zebra is generally larger than Equus zebra hartmannae.


Population
Equus zebra:  600-700 in the wild. Equus zebra hartmannae:  8,000-13,000 in the wild.
Members of the genus Equus (horses, donkeys and zebras) can live 25 to 45 years.
Mountain zebras occur in southwestern Africa. Equus zebra inhabits South Africa and Equus zebra hartmannae inhabits Namibia and Angola.The primary habitats of mountain zebras are the slopes and plateaus of mountainous regions. Mountain zebras inhabit elevations of up to 6,500 feet.


Food
Mountain zebras feed on a variety of grasses. Mountain zebras are most active in the early morning and late afternoon. They spend up to half of the daylight hours feeding. Mountain zebras live in herds consisting of one adult male (stallion), one to five adult females (mares) and their young. The stallion is the dominant member of the herd. Sometimes herds come together to form temporary groups of up to 30 members.


Foals (young mountain zebras) weight 55 pounds at birth. Mares normally give birth to their first foal when they are between three and six years of. Normally they then give birth to one foal every one to three years until they are 24.


The spread of agriculture is one of the main threats to the mountain zebra. Their habitat is destroyed to make room for new farmland, and they are hunted and killed so that domestic livestock can graze on the land. Mountain zebras are also hunted for their skins.


Protection
Endangered Species Act. CITES*. Mountain Zebra National Park was established in South Africa for the preservation of Equus zebra.


*Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, an international treaty with more than 144 member countries. Appendix I listed species cannot be traded commercially. Appendix II listed species can be traded commercially only if it does not harm their survival.
                        

Zebra Internet Cafe
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