The closest relative of the horse is a zebra. There are only 3 species of these animals in the whole world: Graves, mountain and ordinary (or Bourcella). Once there was another variety - quagga, but it was exterminated before the beginning of the twentieth century. The zebra first became known after the discovery of the continent of Africa, but there is evidence that these equids were familiar to the ancient Romans.
The article provides information about which animals live in Africa, as well as more detailed information about zebras.
Africa Overview
Africa is the continent that is the second largest in the world and has a rich and diverse wildlife. Predators and huge herds of herbivores roam the wide savannahs, snakes and monkeys live in dense and dark forests. Here extends not only the largest Sahara desert in the world, but also the smaller Kalahari and Namib. The hot air of these places and the meager amount of rainfall forced desert animals to adapt to the harsh realities of life. During the dry season, herds of animals travel long distances in search of moisture.
The largest freshwater lakes of the continent: Victoria, Turkana, Tanganyika, Albert and Nyasa. Here the Nile carries its waters - the longest river in the whole world. The rivers Congo, Senegal, Zambezi, Niger, Limpopo and Orange are also vital waterways for a huge number of representatives of fauna and flora. What animals live in Africa? The continent is rich in a huge variety of mammals, birds, amphibians and reptiles.
African buffalo, elephant, bongo antelope, hyena dog, gazelle dorkas, hippo, rhinoceros, giraffe, lion, zebra, baboon, chimpanzee and many others. etc. - all of them are representatives of the fauna of this fabulous hot land.
The article presents in more detail the Burchella zebra: what it eats, where it lives, lifestyle, etc.
Species and habitats of zebras
Each species lives in different parts of the African continent.
- Gravy's zebra (or desert) is the largest species considered endangered. About 2.5 thousand of them remained in the wild. In length, this zebra reaches 3 meters, and the height at the withers is approximately 1.4 m. Habitats are deserts and semi-deserts of Ethiopia, Kenya and Somalia.
- The mountain zebra has two subspecies - the Cape Zebra and the Hartman Zebra. The first is found in the zebra park (South Africa) and at the Cape of Good Hope. The second subspecies is distributed on the mountain plateaus of South Africa and Namibia. The number of Cape zebras is 700 individuals, and Hartman's zebras is approximately 15, 000.
- The Burchell zebras inhabited the savannas and steppe regions of southeast Africa (covers territories from southern Ethiopia to the eastern regions of Angola and South Africa). This variety is the most common and numerous. It is found in Kenya, Mozambique, Tanzania, Uganda, South Sudan and Zambia. The main range is the southeastern part of the African continent.
Subspecies of savannah zebras
This species is divided into 6 subspecies depending on the location of the habitat. Moreover, the only distinguishing feature of the subspecies affiliation is only the color, or rather, the nature of the arrangement of the bands. Otherwise, they have no external and other differences. They all have a tight physique and relatively short legs. Inherent to all subspecies, the difference between the female and male in size is the first 10% smaller and has a thinner neck.
The uniqueness of all subspecies lies in the individual unique pattern of the hairline of animals.
Appearance
Burchella's zebra (savannah) is the most common species, which was named after the botanist Burchella (a famous English scientist). The zebra has the ability to change the pattern on the skin, depending on the habitat. Subspecies living in the most northern regions are characterized by the presence of a clearer and more pronounced pattern. Subspecies of the southern regions have blurred outlines of stripes in the abdominal part of the trunk and beige stripes on white skin.
The maximum weight is 340 kg, and the body length is up to 2.4 meters. The tail length varies from 46 to 57 cm (without a brush of long hair).
Unlike the mountain, the Burchellian zebra does not have a bulge in the neck and there is no lattice pattern on the croup.
Lifestyle and lifestyle
Zebras are very curious animals, and therefore they often fall prey to many predators. These mammals come together in small herds, in which several families gather, with about 10 animals each. Moreover, one male accounts for 5-6 females and several cubs, fiercely guarded by the head of this family. In one herd, most often there are no more than 50 individuals, however, you can find more numerous herds.
In each family of these artiodactyls, a rather strict hierarchy is observed - during rest, as a rule, some individuals play the role of sentries, so that others feel safe. It should be noted that savannah zebras are animals that expel young males from their herd (age from 1 to 3 years). Such young animals can live individually and in small groups until they reach puberty.
Diet
Different species and subspecies have differences in nutrition.
Burchella zebras, like other species, are herbivorous animals. Mostly they feed on herbaceous plants, bark and shoots of shrubs. Adults prefer green short grass.
Inhabiting spacious African savannahs with a fairly rich flora, this species of zebras does not lack food. They love cereal plants. But in general, savannah zebras diet includes more than 50 species of herbs on the African continent. To a lesser extent, they eat shoots and leaves of shrubs. The problem of good nutrition is most acute because of the sources of water that animals of this species need daily.
The basis of the diet of a mountain zebra is grass and other vegetation that grows in mountainous areas. Some cloven-hoofed mammals eat corn stalks and fruits, shoots and buds of different plants, as well as their root part.
What do desert zebras eat? To a greater extent, they are forced to feed on rather coarse vegetation, not suitable for many other animals belonging to the equine family. In addition, in desert species, the diet includes fibrous herbs with a rather rigid structure.
Most of the day (daylight), all varieties of the family spend on grazing.
Some interesting facts
Often people wonder, a zebra in white or black stripes. Most experts describe the zebra as black with white stripes. The statement of scientists - black is dominant. And the ancestor of the zebra was dark in color, and white spots on its hair were transformed during the long evolution into stripes. In any case, zebra stripes are a unique pattern for absolutely every individual (the same as for tigers). It should be noted that the Burchellian zebra has rarer stripes than the desert one.
It is impossible to find two completely identical zebras. And these animals recognize each other precisely by stripes.
It should be noted that the tsetse fly, which is the enemy of many living creatures in Africa, is able to recognize only monophonic objects. For her, a herd of striped zebras is almost invisible. This saves them from annoying and terrible insects.
Zebras in the wild live up to 25 years, and in the parks due to the lack of predators and poachers, as well as due to the good care of them, they live up to 40 years.
