What continent does a zebra live on. What does a zebra eat? to the stubborn struggle of the zebra for life

In the modern world, many have the opportunity to see outlandish animals in zoo enclosures. Adventure seekers (and upper-middle-income earners) can afford more, such as traveling to a distant land to see the most amazing creatures in their natural habitat. Young lovers of zoology enjoy watching TV shows and reading books about our neighbors on the planet. But nature keeps many more secrets.

Our article will talk about zebras - unusual animals that have always attracted the attention of humans.

Where do zebras live, in what country? What do they eat, how do they escape from predators, are they friendly with their neighbors? Are they harmed by human activity? You will find answers to these and other questions in our article.

Description

The Latin name of this animal is translated as tiger horse. Of course, we are talking only about external resemblance, and not about an intergeneric hybrid. But, frankly, a zebra is more like a donkey: it has the same high ears, a short stiff mane, a strong neck, and it is inferior to a horse in height.

These animals are not so common. The only continent where the zebra lives is Africa. Moreover, different species do not share the total area, but live in different places.

Neighbors and relatives

Currently, scientists distinguish three types of subgenus: these are Burchell's zebra, mountain and Grevy. Until recently, the quagga was a subspecies of Burchellova, now completely exterminated. It is noteworthy that among themselves the species are in the same relationship as with other horses, for example, with the kulan or the Przewalski's horse.

Some mistakenly take the okapi as a relative of the zebra, because its legs also have stripes. But the degree of kinship with him is quite small (this is an animal from the Giraffe family).

Places where zebras, rhinos, lions live attract tourists. Routes are built in such a way that visitors can see as much as possible. Predators are fed by national park workers so that they do not show excessive interest in people and herbivorous neighbors.

But in the wild, zebras try to avoid such large and aggressive animals. But with herbivorous counterparts, for example, buffalo and giraffes, they get along well. Often herds huddle together in a motley mass to defend themselves.

Representatives of different species of zebras do not contact each other in the natural environment, because they live in different territories.

Zebra Gravy and its range

This animal is also called the desert zebra. Unfortunately, at present, about 2,500 individuals remain in their natural environment.

Gravy is the largest. In length, such a zebra reaches 3 meters, the height at the withers is 1.4 meters.

Countries where the Grevy zebra lives: Kenya, Somalia and Ethiopia. These animals settle only in deserts and semi-deserts. The basis of the diet is coarse vegetation, shrubs.

Where does Burchell's zebra live?

This subspecies lives in savannas and steppes. The range extends to the countries of southeast Africa from southern Ethiopia to the east of Angola and South Africa, including Kenya, Tanzania, Mozambique, Uganda, Zambia and South Sudan.

Among all species, this is the most common and numerous.

Where zebras live and what they eat also depends on the species, because the diet is determined by the climatic zone. Compared to Gravy, Burchell's menu is more varied. It includes not only land plants, but also leaves and bark of trees.

Mountain zebra habitats

Scientists divide this species into two subspecies. The Hartmann's zebra can be seen in the mountains of South Africa and Namibia, no higher than 2 km above sea level. The number of subspecies is about 15 thousand heads.

The Cape Zebra is the smallest of the currently existing subspecies. According to scientists, there are currently no more than 700 individuals. They live in the South African Zebra National Zebra Park, as well as near the Cape of Good Hope.

Lifestyle

In the wild, these animals gather in small herds-harems. An adult stallion is always at the head, several females with babies live with him. Despite polygamy, zebra families are very strong, partners do not part all their lives. Only the death of a male can cause the herd to break up.

The places where zebras live usually do not contain natural shelters, so the animals rely only on their own legs. All zebras are excellent runners, they can run at speeds up to 70 km/h.

Social roles in the group are distributed. During the rest of the herd, at least two females are awake, and in case of danger they make noise. During the movement to the watering hole, the most experienced female walks first, and the male, the head of the family, closes the column.

It is customary for zebras to help each other out, to take care of the wounded. In the event of an attack, the herd surrounds weak, small and sick relatives, preventing hyenas and jackals from getting close to them. By the way, these animals can attack even large cats in a group, seeing them approaching the parking lot. Powerful hooves and jaws with massive teeth can notably spoil a lion's skin. But, of course, a considerable percentage of such fights end in victory for the lionesses.

The birth of a striped baby

Zebra pregnancy lasts a year or a little more (depending on the subspecies and the age of the female). The baby is born large, about 30 kg, and quite independent. He almost immediately gets on his feet and takes the first steps.

The mother does not let him near the herd for the first couple of days, until he begins to confidently recognize her smell and stripe pattern. Breastfeeding lasts about 16 months, almost until sexual maturity.

What do a snowflake, a zebra and a human palm have in common? All three examples are unique. The pattern of stripes does not repeat, it is impossible to find two identical zebras. It is by the stripes that they recognize each other.

For a long time, the question of whether this animal is black with white stripes or, conversely, remained open. Today, scientists agreed that this option is correct, because the ancestor of the zebra was dark, and the white spots were transformed into stripes during evolution.

The tsetse fly, a natural enemy of many inhabitants of Africa, recognizes only plain spots. The striped herd is practically invisible to her.

In the wild, zebras live for 25 years. But in the park, thanks to good care, protection from poachers and predators, as well as a balanced diet, they live up to 40 years.

The sad fate of the quagga

A beautiful color and a well-dressed skin caused the quaggs to become one of the most coveted hunting trophies. According to scientists, these inhabitants of the African savannas were not at all afraid of humans, due to which they became easy prey for the hunter.

At the end of the century before last, the quaggs were completely exterminated.

Currently, only a few photographs of these animals have been preserved. They differed from other species and subspecies in color: the body of the quagga was not completely covered with stripes.

But if earlier beautiful skins were the main object of increased interest, today research motives prevail. A person begins to understand that the consumer attitude to the wealth of the planet, the thoughtless extermination of the living and the foolish spending of resources will sooner or later turn against him. Of course, it is too early to declare the eradication of poaching, but the first steps have already been taken, a common noble goal has been outlined. Conservation activities, the activities of global funds and volunteer initiatives give hope that the sad history of the quagga will not be repeated.

Zebras are a small group of animals from the Oequid-hoofed order. The closest relatives of zebras are wild donkeys and horses, and more distant are rhinos and tapirs. Now three species of zebras have survived, the fourth species - quagga - is completely exterminated by man.

Zebras in the savannah.

Being the most primitive representatives of the equine family, zebras combine the features of a donkey and a horse. The size of a zebra is about a small horse: the height at the withers is 1.2-1.4 m, weight 350 kg. But their legs are not as tall and slender as those of horses, their head is relatively large and heavy (especially in the Gravy zebra), donkey-like large ears and the same donkey tail with a tassel. The voice of zebras is also more like a short cry of a donkey. The mane of zebras is erect. The coloration is a contrasting white and black transverse stripes covering the entire body. Zebras of different species have differences in color. For example, in the Gravy zebra, the stripes are thin and frequent, do not reach the abdomen, and create a black belt on the back.

Grevy's zebras (Equus grevyi).

In the Burchell zebra, the stripes are wide and sparse on the belly and merge into a black belt. Another of its subspecies, Chapman's zebra, has thin additional brownish stripes in the middle of the white stripes.

Chapman's zebras (Equus burchelli antiquorum).

Despite such a simple geometric pattern, the arrangement of the stripes on the body of each animal is strictly individual and never repeats.

Although both zebras belong to the same species, individual differences in coloration are very noticeable.

Occasionally in nature there are mutations of zebras with an almost monochromatic color.

Natural mutation of the zebra.

All species of zebras live in Africa, of which the Burchell's zebra is the most widespread species and is found everywhere in grassy and shrubby savannahs. Mountain zebra and Gravy's zebra live only in southern Africa, with mountain zebra inhabiting mountain plateaus, and Gravy's zebra prefers desert areas with sparse vegetation. Zebras are herd animals, the number of individuals in the herd can vary from 10 to several hundred. Zebras do not have permanent habitats and roam depending on the location of fresh grass. Particularly large-scale migrations are made by Burchell's zebras, which often migrate with wildebeests. Sometimes zebras form mixed herds with wildebeest and ostriches.

Zebras and wildebeests cross the river together during their migration.

Zebras feed only on grassy vegetation. They graze around the clock as they do not have a pronounced daily activity. These animals also need a lot of water and regularly go to the watering hole.

Zebras at the waterhole.

In a herd of zebras, calm and peaceful relations reign. The herd is led by a male, who shows increased vigilance and constantly monitors the situation around. Other members of the herd alternately raise their heads while grazing, not losing sight of the surroundings. To express friendly feelings, zebras have a sign language: they approach each other and put their heads on the shoulders or croup of a fellow, they also lightly bite each other's necks to express tenderness. However, during the pursuit, zebras do not protect their fellows, so an animal that has moved away from the herd runs the risk of being eaten.

Although zebras breed all year round, the mass appearance of offspring usually coincides with the rainy season. During the rut, males leading herds protect their herds from the encroachments of lonely stallions.

During the fight, the males rear up and beat each other with their front hooves.

Marriage fights are more of a ritual nature and rarely end in serious injuries.

Another favorite technique is to kneel down and bite the opponent's legs.

In the harem of each male there are no more than 10-15 females. Pregnancy lasts 13 months.

Pregnant zebra.

Zebras give birth to only one, but very large and developed cub.

A newborn baby zebra is trying to stand up.

Within 10 minutes after birth, the foal is on its feet, after 20 it is able to walk, after 40 it jumps around its mother.

Boehme's zebra, or Grant's zebra (Equus burchelli bohme) - one of the subspecies of the Burchelli zebra - feeds a foal.

Despite such mobility, it is not able to maintain the gallop speed of adult animals (and zebras jump at speeds up to 50 km / h). Therefore, the mass foaling of females attracts a large number of predators who are not averse to tasting easy prey.

In general, zebras, along with wildebeests, make up the most massive prey of lions, hyenas, and hyena-like dogs. Less often they are hunted by leopards and cheetahs. At watering places and during migrations, zebras often become prey to crocodiles. Zebras can only be opposed to predators by speed and kicks with their hind legs, with which they sometimes try to fight off their pursuer. If the predator acts alone, this sometimes works, but with a group attack, zebras are doomed.

A zebra fights off a lioness with its hooves.

People have also always hunted zebras. But, if the local tribes could not undermine the number of countless herds with single attacks, then the European colonists with the help of firearms staged a real massacre. A vivid proof is the fate of one of the species of zebras - the quagga - which was completely exterminated (the initial number of the species was estimated at several million heads!).

Quagga (Equus quagga) was only half striped.

Until now, the mountain zebra population is at a critical level. In captivity, zebras are perfectly tamed and even give hybrids with horses and donkeys.

to the stubborn struggle of the zebra for life.

Zebra - perhaps, along with a lion, an elephant, a giraffe and a hippopotamus, is one of the symbols of the more than rich animal world of Africa. Therefore, it is not at all surprising that the name "zebra", a word of African origin, came unchanged to all European languages. Zebra is an African relative of our horse, belongs to the horse family, the order of equids, the class of mammals, and our today's article is about it.

Description of the zebra, structure, characteristics

The body of a zebra is medium in size, usually about 2 meters in length, moreover, the tail grows up to 50 cm. The average weight of zebras is about 300-350 kg. The male zebra is larger than the female. In general, the physique of zebras is very dense and stocky. The mane of the zebra is stiff and short, and the neck is muscular, and in males it is more muscular than in females.

Also, the zebra has very strong hooves, which often become the key to its survival in the African shroud. Although zebras do not run as fast as horses, they are much more enduring, and in case of danger (especially in the form of hungry lions, cheetahs, hyenas and other predators) they can reach speeds of up to 80 km/h. Moreover, it is interesting that zebras often run away from their pursuers in zigzags that knock down predators, this is their special tactic. Also, zebras sometimes use their powerful hooves as a real weapon to fight off the same attacking lions.

But, alas, they cannot boast of their vision, zebras, it is poorly developed in them, but this shortcoming is fully compensated by excellent charm - by smell, a zebra can smell a potential danger and warn its native herd about it. However, lions are also well aware of this feature of zebras, and therefore it is not without reason that they sneak up on a herd of grazing zebras precisely from the windward side, so that it would be more difficult for zebras to smell them by smell.

How long do zebras live

The life of a zebra in the African shroud is fraught with many dangers, usually “striped horses” do not die at all from old age, but from the teeth of predators that are hungry for meat. Those, in turn, always kill the weakest representatives of the kingdom of zebras. And the older the zebra gets, the weaker its strength, the more chances it has to become someone's prey. In general, in natural conditions, the average life expectancy of a zebra is 25-30 years, but in zoos, zebras may well live up to 40 years.

Zebra stripes. Why are zebras striped?

Philosophers often compare our life with a zebra: a black stripe is replaced by white, white by black, and so on ad infinitum, in such a way that the zebra itself, or rather its amazing color, has become a symbol of the impermanence of our being. But these are philosophers, but scientists zoologists are engaged in other disputes, more mundane, namely, what color is a zebra: white with black stripes, or black with white stripes. Recently, scientists have argued that the dominant color of the zebra is still black. Also, these same stripes for each zebra are unique and create their own unique pattern, which, by the way, also serves for practical purposes, just by the unique pattern, zebra cubs recognize their mother.

But not only this is the use of the famous zebra stripes, they also serve as a kind of disguise - the animal visually merges with the hot, trembling air of the African shroud, which disorientates predators. Also striped disguise perfectly protects against annoying flies and horseflies. The structure of the eyes of flies and horseflies is arranged in such a way that they react only to polarized color, and a black-and-white zebra is perceived simply as an inedible object.

Zebra stripes also carry out thermoregulation of their body, contribute to its cooling. It works in such a way that white stripes (like all white ones) heat up much less than black ones, the temperature difference creates microcirculation of air currents around the zebra, which makes it much easier to endure the exhausting African heat.

Zebra species, names and photos

Zebras are actually divided into three species, and below we will write about each of them.

She is also a Burchel zebra - the most common, conditionally "classic" species of zebras, living mainly in Southeast Africa. The “Burchel” zebra got its name in honor of the English zoologist William Burchel, who spent many years studying the lifestyle and habits of zebras. In particular, he noticed that the black and white patterns on the bodies of zebras differ depending on their habitats, for example, zebras living closer to the equator have a very pronounced pattern, while zebras living in southern Africa have a blurry pattern at the bottom. body, and the presence of beige stripes on a white background of the skin. Depending on the coloring, there were as many as 6 subspecies of the Burchel zebra.

She is Grevy's zebra. The name "Grevy" was given thanks to the first president of France, Jules Grevy, who at the end of the 19th century, the authorities of Abyssinia presented a zebra of this species as a gift. The desert zebra is the largest not only among zebras, but also among all other representatives of the horse family - its body length reaches up to 3 m, and its weight is over 400 kg. They are also distinguished by the predominance of white and a wide black stripe running along the back of the zebra. The stripes of the desert zebra themselves are thinner than those of the savannah and are located closer to each other. They live in East Africa, they can be found in the national parks of Kenya, Uganda, Ethiopia.

mountain zebra

It has the darkest color among other zebras and, in turn, is divided into two subspecies: the Cape mountain zebra and the Hartman mountain zebra.

The Cape mountain zebra lives on the territory of the Republic of South Africa and is under the protection of the state, the excessive extermination of zebras at the beginning of the last century led to the fact that the Cape mountain zebras were on the verge of extinction. But even today, despite the precautionary measures, the number of these zebras is not very large, according to zoologists, only about 400 individuals of this species of zebra live in the national parks of South Africa. The Cape Zebra is also the smallest of all zebras. It also differs from other zebras in that it does not have stripes on its stomach.

Hartmann's mountain zebra, like the Cape zebra, is also on the verge of extinction, which is, of course, due to human stupidity and greed - at the beginning of the last century, white farmers who settled in Africa ruthlessly shot zebras that prevented them from walking their livestock. The Hartmann's zebra is slightly larger than the Cape zebra and has narrower black stripes. It lives in the mountainous regions of Namibia (southwest Africa).

Zebroids and zebrules

Zebroids and zebrules are hybrids born from crossing a zebra and a horse, as well as a zebra and a donkey. Usually a zebra is used as a male, and a horse as a female, the born cubs are more like a horse, but the color is striped - an inheritance from a zebra dad. Hybrids are similar to zebras, but much better than those amenable to training, sometimes used as beasts of burden.

Where do zebras live

Zebras live in vast areas of the African continent, but their largest concentration is in the eastern African shrouds, if you want to get to know them better, then welcome to safari national parks in Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, and South Africa.

What does a zebra eat

It's no secret that the zebra is a herbivore that loves lush grass, shrub leaves, and plant roots. Zebras eat a lot and migrate in herds in dry seasons in search of green pastures. Also, the body of a zebra (and especially a pregnant female) requires a lot of moisture and the presence of water nearby is a very important circumstance for the life of a zebra. If rivers or lakes dry up, which happens under the scorching African sun, zebras can even dig a small artificial well themselves.

Zebra lifestyle and breeding

Zebras are herd animals living in large herds under the rule of an adult stallion. But the most important thing inside the herd of zebras is not the “head stallion”, but the oldest female, she is something like an elder. The main part of the herd is made up of females with their cubs. It is interesting that male zebras, upon reaching sexually mature age (3 years), are expelled from the parental herd and can form their own "male" herd or live alone (which is much more dangerous).

About once every two to three years, female zebras become pregnant and give birth to cubs. The gestation period itself lasts about 370 days. During the birth, the male father, like a true gentleman, guards the mother and cub.

Little zebras develop very quickly, after 10-15 minutes a newborn baby can already stand on his feet, after another five minutes he is already walking, and after an hour he can already stomp with his mother a zebra for a decent distance.

An interesting fact: the milk of a zebra mother, with which she feeds her cubs of an unusual color, is pink. It contains many useful nutrients necessary for the growing body of a zebra cub.

• Zebras have a wild and vicious disposition; at the moment of danger, a cornered zebra can even repulse a lion. Also, the violent and wild temper of these amazing representatives of the horse family led to the fact that a person could not (unlike an ordinary horse) tame zebras.
• Zebras are one of the few animals along with humans that have color vision. The only thing is that they do not distinguish orange at all.
• Zebras can wallow in the mud for a long time, which, oddly enough, speaks of their ... cleanliness. The fact is that in such a simple way they get rid of annoying insects.
• Zebras cooperate well with other African herbivores: wildebeest and even giraffes, creating large common herds in which it is much easier to defend against predators.

Zebra wildlife video

And in conclusion, we suggest you watch an interesting scientific film about zebras from National Geographic.

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Many varieties, one of which is zebra. An interesting striped horse looks more like a fairy tale or cartoon heroine than a real inhabitant of the savannah. Where did those black and white stripes come from?

Many scientists have long tried to answer this seemingly simple question. Some were inclined to the version that, thus, with the help of color, the zebra disguises itself from predators that threaten the life of the animal every minute.

For not a small amount of time, this version was considered correct. But later, everyone unanimously came to the conclusion that the stripes on the zebra scare away the tsetse fly from the animal, the bite of which poses a considerable threat to many. The tsetse fly is a carrier of a fever that no one is immune from.

The striped animal becomes inconspicuous for this terrible insect, so its bites are most often avoided. To understand what animal is zebra, you can visit the zoo and chat with the animal live. It is small in size compared to other inhabitants of the African animal world and has a dense physique.

The length of the animal reaches up to 2.5 meters, the length of the tail is 50 cm. Zebra height at the withers about 1.5 meters, weight up to 350 kg. Females are usually always 10% smaller than males. An important point is the fact that for each individual there is an individual pattern.

It's like every person has their own fingerprints. There are three zebra species- those who live in the desert, on the plain and in the mountains. These are equine smooth-haired animals.

Zebra Features and Habitat

The entire territory of the South-East is the permanent habitat of the zebra. The shrouds of the Eastern and Southern parts were chosen for themselves by plain zebras. The territory of South West Africa was preferred by mountain zebras.

In the photo, a flat zebra

Desert zebras live in Kenya and Ethiopia. Feeding conditions may vary due to weather. In dry times, the zebra migrates to a more humid area. Sometimes they can travel a distance of 1000 km. Zebras live in those places in which there is a sufficient amount of plant food.

Animal with zebra legs exist. This and with whom they sometimes cooperate and graze together, in common herds. Thus, it is much easier for them to notice the danger approaching them and flee.

The nature and lifestyle of the zebra

The zebra is a very curious animal that often suffers because of this personality trait. She has a fairly well-developed sense of smell, so she manages to hear danger in advance. But the zebra has some problems with vision, the predator can be seen at the wrong time.

They live in herds. For one male in such families, 5-6 mares fall. The head of the family always fiercely guards all his mares and cubs. If one of the herd is in danger, the male boldly enters into a skirmish with the predator until he succumbs to the incredible pressure of the male zebra and retreats. The herd usually has from 50 to 60 individuals, but sometimes this number reaches up to a hundred.

From kind and calm animals, they can turn into vicious and wild. The enemy of his zebra can be mercilessly beaten and bitten. It's almost impossible to tame them. And not a single daredevil managed to saddle. Zebra in the photo involuntarily lead a person to delight. Some incredible beauty and grace is hidden in this wonderful animal.

Zebra food

All plant foods are what they love wild animals zebras. Leaves, shrubs, branches, various grasses and tree bark are what representatives of this genus prefer.

Zebra savannah animal very greedy. They eat just a huge amount of vegetation. They need to drink such a dry food with plenty of water, for this they will need about 8-10 liters per day.

Reproduction and lifespan

There is no specific breeding season for these animals. A small stallion can be born at any time of the year. Most often this occurs during the wet rainy season, when nutritional problems are not felt.

Pregnancy lasts 345-390 days. Mostly one baby is born from her. It weighs an average of about 30 kg. An hour after birth, the foal can walk and ride freely on its own.

Breastfeeding lasts for a baby for more than a year, despite the fact that after a week he tries to pinch the grass on his own. In 50% of cases, newborn zebras die from attacks of predatory animals in the form of hyenas, crocodiles, and lions.

Offspring in females appears once every three years. At the age of one and a half years, the animals are already sexually mature and ready for independent life. But the female is ready for the appearance of the baby only after three years.

Reproductive abilities are preserved in zebras up to 18 years of age. Zebras live in the wild for 25 to 30 years. In captivity, their life expectancy is slightly increased, and they live up to 40 years.