ANIMAL: Grant’s Zebra Equus boehmi Type of Animal: Equine Habitat: Grassland, savanna, woodland, plains Location(s): Kenya, Tanzania, S.E. Somalia, S. Ethiopia, Malawi, Zambia, S.E. Democratic Republic of Congo Appearance: Stout appearance, black w/ white stripes, mid-sized equine, relatively short legs, foals dark brown & white at birth Food/Diet: Grasses, roots, bark, stems, twigs, leaves, herbs, shrubs Status in Wild: Stable Conservation: Breeding on ranches, zoos, & wildlife parks Lifestyle: Basic herds comprise of stallion & harem of 2-10 mares and foals. Many stallions live in bachelor herds of 2-15 zebras. In migrations, different harem & bachelor herds come together forming aggregations of thousands, even tens of thousands. Additional Info: Called: Male-Stallion Female-Mare Young-Foal Group-Herd Weight: Male-500-700 lbs Female-485-700 lbs Young-70 lbs Gestation: 1 year Height: 4.6 ft Body Length: 8 ft Life Span: 20-25 years in wild, up to 40 years in captivity Tail Length: 1.5-1.8 ft Main predators are lions, hyenas, wild dogs, crocodiles, leopards, & cheetahs. Stallions sometimes fight to the death over young mares as they start setting up harems. Harems result from stallions abducting young mares from their father’s herd. Therefore, most fights occur between a bachelor & a harem stallion. Most attempts to domesticate zebras proven unsuccessful. However, some people have managed to train zebras for riding. One good example occurring in 2009 was British racehorse trainer Bill Turner who bought a young zebra from a Dutch game park. Zebras have wide range of temperaments from very friendly to extremely aggressive. Stallions have been known to kick at predators, knocking predator’s teeth out. One of most common African ungulates (hoofed animals). There have been a few documented cases in captivity of stallions killing foals that were not their own offspring. This would only have happened if the former stallion was unfit or old, because most stallions once they finish setting harem up are rarely fought with unless it has to do with their daughters or are unfit. Mares once impregnated stay in same harem for life. They have excellent eyesight & hearing. Fun Fact(s): No two zebras have same stripe pattern. Stripes help zebra blend in w/ herd so predator can’t single one zebra out. They can run up to 40 mph.
