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November 8, 2012

the darker side of the zebra

Being one of the most iconic mammals in Africa, the zebra is one of those creatures that just blow the mind when you see it for the first time. This strange painted horse with its patterned white and black stripes seem so out of place in an environment as hostile as Africa. The idea that an animal will choose the two most outstanding colours in the bush as its garment instead of trying to meld in with the background browns and reds has astounded scientists for years and there are a number of theories that have been developed.

zebra fight while on safari at sabi sabi

zebra fight while on safari at sabi sabi private game reserve

The first theory is that they have the stripes not to hide from sight but to dazzle the predators with many stripes so as to confuse the predator and make it more difficult to pick out an individual. This is further supported by the fact that a baby zebra is born with extra long legs so that its tummy lines up with the adults, again allowing it to disappear into a kaleidoscope of stripes. The second theory is to ward off insects like the tsetse fly, which is confused by the polarising effect of the white. The zebra could not become completely white as it would stand out like a sore thumb but instead used a mixture of black and white. The third theory is not my favourite but here it is for you to make your own mind up. It is thought that the stripes would assist in cooling the zebra as the black stripes would get hot and cause an updraft of air and the cooler white stripe would have a down draft casing mini rotations of air around the zebra, thus keeping it cool.

Zebra interaction while on safari at Sabi Sabi

The next most common question is, “is a zebra white with black stripes or black with white stripes?” And the answer is… black with white stripes. If you were to shave a zebra down to its skin you would find that its skin is black. Below is a photo I took a few days ago of a sick foal that has lost the hair around its face and has some patches missing around its rump showing clearly the black skin underneath. It is always sad to see an animal that is not at full health, especially when they are so small, but animals have an amazing power of recovery and hopefully this little zebra will make it all the way to adulthood.

Zebra interaction while on safari at Sabi Sabi

Now the darkest side of a zebra is not its black stripes or its black skin but instead its social structure. Zebra are grouped into harems where there is one dominant male with as many as 6 females and their foals in the group. All younger males with no harem would form bachelor herds and wait until they are big enough to start their own harem. Zebra stallions will fight with each other for females and will even go as far as stealing females from one another. If the female which is stolen is pregnant, the new male will rape her until such time as she has aborted the pregnancy. Abortion would be done by releasing hormones that would cause her body to reabsorb the foetus or miscarry or if she gave birth to a live foal it would be kicked to death by the male. This seems extreme but it ensures that the strongest genetics survive and the killing of another males young is not uncommon practice in the animal kingdom and is called infanticide.

zebra fight while on safari at sabi sabi

zebra fight while on safari at sabi sabi

The fights between males are often very violent and can end in death. The males will attempt to bite the others neck and legs and fights can last for long periods of time. Eventually when one of the males is exhausted and falls to the ground the other male might kick its competitor to death. Just a few days ago we witnessed a fight but fortunately it was more a play fight than a full on fight to the death. Two males were testing each other, practising their technique and establishing a hierarchy that would stand for a while to come. The establishment of these hierarchies is important so that all the males fight within their class and avoid being killed by a much stronger competitor. The thing I love most about nature is that it is not just black and white but has such depth behind such a simple appearance.

zebra fight while on safari at sabi sabi

zebra fight while on safari at sabi sabi

by: Richard de Gouveia (Little Bush Camp ranger)

Filed Under: ranger sightings

Comments

  1. sheila says

    November 8, 2012 at 6:15 am

    Another one of Africa’s unique animals. Great blog, Richard. It’s always nice to learn something new. Thank you.

    Reply
    • ranger rich says

      November 16, 2012 at 8:49 am

      Glad you enjoyed it Sheila

      Reply
  2. heather says

    November 8, 2012 at 7:07 am

    What superb photography!

    Reply
    • ranger rich says

      November 17, 2012 at 9:56 am

      Thanks Heather

      Reply
  3. syl says

    November 9, 2012 at 4:05 am

    Great blog Richard. I love learning things like this. Thanks so very much.

    Reply
    • ranger rich says

      November 17, 2012 at 9:57 am

      I am so glad you learnt something new Syl!

      Reply
  4. SOUVENIR says

    November 10, 2012 at 12:32 am

    thank you!

    these pictures is so beautiful !

    as well make me get the knowledge about the wildlife。

    Reply
    • ranger rich says

      November 17, 2012 at 9:58 am

      Thanks for the comment Souvenir

      Reply
  5. debbie says

    March 16, 2015 at 1:30 pm

    Thanks informative reading.

    Reply
  6. Thana says

    January 14, 2016 at 7:10 pm

    This is very interesting. Who knew such beautiful creatures were so complex.

    Reply
  7. Sylvia says

    October 24, 2016 at 3:03 pm

    Thanks now I know why the older zebra killed the little ones.

    Reply
  8. Sepp taha says

    March 2, 2017 at 9:32 pm

    Thanks for clarifying that aftermath. It was awful.

    Reply
  9. Marilyn says

    March 23, 2017 at 1:02 am

    Why do male zebra’s kill the babies to the female zebra’s when they give birth? Is this pattern of all males animals when the babies are not theirs?

    Reply
  10. john dodds says

    March 22, 2018 at 12:02 pm

    Hi There

    while watching youtube I was shocked to see male zebra killing their young.
    Everyone will know about infanticide within lion prides, so is this a common trait with all bush wildlife? I have see another youtube video about mustangs in the USA where a foal is born to one female but it couldn’t stand up. After hours of standing by ,the herd eventually moved away a small distance, when another herd came along .The stallion from the new herd came along and killed the disabled foal. First time I had seen infanticide outside of lion prides. It was quite shocking to see. Would this be classed as infanticide because there was no takeover bid to control the first herd?

    Best Regards
    john

    Reply
  11. Paul says

    September 6, 2018 at 1:52 pm

    I can nowhere find an answere to this question “Male Impala rams also will collect a harem , but often falls victim because of “the rut” has been so exhausting ,he makes an easier target for predators..what happens when his harem has been taken over by another ram , who probably will kill the offspring of the previoust male , or will the new ram cause the females to abort…..? Or will the females travel on to give birth in a different place…
    Just recently saw a docu about how some rams made an easier target for cheetahs, because of exhaustion….

    Reply

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