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Fast Facts:

  • This zebra has seven to ten neck stripes and three to four vertical body stripes.

  • Zebras sleep in turns, so that some members of herd are always awake.

  • Use teeth and hooves for defense.

Common Zebra

Scientific Name: Equus Burchelli Bohmi
Classification: Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Class: Mammalia Order: Perissodactyla Family: Equidae
Status: Stable
Range: From northern Zimbabwe to the Sudan in East Africa.
Habitat: Grasslands
Diet: Grass
Size: Height: 4-5 feet
Weight: 500-700 pounds.
Lifespan: 28 yrs.
Location:
Print Fact Sheet Common Zebra

Special Features:

  • Large barrel-shaped body holds a very large amount of relatively un-nutritious grass.
  • Very dependent on water.
  • Capable of running 40 mph.
  • The zebra is the only grazer to have both upper and lower incisors; it can thus snip the grass blade (rather than yanking it out), exposing the tender under grasses for others.
  • Zebras form mixed herds with different kinds of antelope.


Social Structure & Behavior:

Live in herds of 17 mares with 1 stallion. During travel, the herd is led by the dominant female and her foal, followed by other females in their order of dominance. Strong family unit. Will not leave the weak behind.

Breeding & Care of Young:
Males sexually mature at 5-6 years old. Females 2 years old. Gestation is 12-13 months. Usually a single birth. Young males leave the herd to form bachelor herds at 2 years old. The foals are born with brown stripes

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