Male and female zebras are similar in appearance.  Shoulder height is approximately 4.5 feet.  Males usually have thicker necks than females.  Weights average between 450 and 500 lbs.  Plains zebras differ from other zebras by having shorter heads and smaller ears.

Approximately 3 years of age

In the wild, they eat a variety of grasses and some browse.  In the Zoo, they are fed hay, grain and alfalfa with fruits as dietary supplements.

Plains zebras are social.  They live in small, stable family groups.  These groups, called harems, consist of a stallion and one to several mares and their foals.  Amongst the females there is a dominance hierarchy.  The stallion’s favorite mare is the highest-ranking mare with the most recently acquired mare being the lowest ranking mare.  All others fall somewhere in between the two.  Bachelor stallions may live singly or in non-familial groups.  Group size varies with the quality of the local habitat.  A stallion does not tolerate other males mating with his harem of mares.  Stallions defend their harems from other males and predators by biting and kicking.  Zebras have been known to kill hyenas with a single kick.

One of the adult mares (usually the dominant mare) has the important task of leading the family as they move between areas.  It is vital that they maintain proximity to available drinking water.  Each group has a territory.  Depending on the quality of the habitat ranges vary from 31 to over 135 square miles.  When the habitat deteriorates during the dry season, many family groups come together and migrate to different habitats where home ranges are often as large as 230 square miles.  Herds of zebra often graze in association with herds of other species such as wildebeest.  This grouping of large animals is protective because it lowers the odds that any particular individual will become the target of a predator.

Zebras are grazers, eating over 50 different species of grasses.  They occasionally eat browse, herbs, leaves and twigs. They particularly prefer new growth that occurs after a burn or after the rains come.  Tall grass and sparsely wooded conditions are also tolerated, which gives them a greater geographical range than many of the other African grazing animals.  Zebras are the first species to utilize an area, followed by wildebeests and gazelles.  Each of these species utilizes a different part of the grass, and each depends on the one ahead of it to get to the part of the grass it eats.  Zebras prefer high quality, low fiber foods even though they can survive on low quality diets.

At night, zebras stay in areas with shorter grass.  One of the group members is awake at all times, on the lookout for predators using the tall grass and trees as cover.

Mares usually bear only one foal.  The gestation period is about 11.5 months (approximately 350 days).  Foals can be born throughout the year, but a definite peak occurs early in the rainy season in December and January.   Seven to 10 days following a birth, a female enters estrous.  As a result, the mating season and birthing season occur at the same time of year.  Foals are up and about within one hour after birth.  Within a few weeks, foals begin to graze but will not be weaned until 8 to 13 months of age.  Females can breed annually, but most miss a year because of the strains of rearing foals.  Female offspring leave, or emigrate from, their natal group when they become sexually mature at approximately two years of age.  Male offspring disperse by their fourth year to form bachelor groups.  Only after a number of years in such associations are males able to defend territories, steal young females, or displace established harem males.

Zebra’s striping patterns are variable.  In some areas of Africa (especially near the equator) the stripes are bold and cover the whole body.  In other regions, stripes are lighter or absent on the belly and lower legs.  The Plains zebra’s pattern can be distinguished from other zebras’ patterns by the presence of “shadow stripes” (lighter strips found in the white area between black stripes) on the back and hindquarters, and the absence of a dewlap (a flap of loose skin found under the throat).

They use their agile lips to push the vegetation between their incisors, which they then snip off.  The plants are ground between their powerful jaws, which move side-to-side as well as back to front.  A hindgut fermentation system incompletely digests plant cell walls but processing is rapid.  As long as zebras can ingest large quantities of food, they can achieve extraction rates equal to those of ruminants.  Because forage quality does not affect this process, zebras can sustain themselves in more marginal habitats and on diets of lower quality than ruminants can.  Most of their time is spent foraging.   Even when vegetation is growing rapidly, they will spend 60% of their day eating (80% when conditions worsen).

No two zebras have identical striping patterns, a fact that makes individual identification convenient for researchers.

Newborn zebras are able to stand on their own within 15 minutes of birth.

Zebras have beautiful and unique striped hides, which have historically been a valuable commodity.

Plains zebras have mated with donkeys, producing a hybrid that has been called a “zebdonk.” 

The function of the zebra’s trademark stripes is still a matter of controversy.  It is possible that under certain light conditions they provide camouflage.  It is also possible that the patterns make it difficult for a predator to single out an individual against a backdrop of a whole herd.  Neither of these explanations has been shown to be true, however, and the zebra’s stripes remain a mystery.

Punda milia is Swahili for “striped donkey.”

There are three recognized subspecies of this zebra.  The names “Grant’s Zebra” and “Bohm’s Zebra” are two of the subspecies.

Through the centuries many people have tried to use zebras as pack animals.  They do not enjoy being ridden and tend to be unpredictable in their behavior.  For these reasons, most attempts to domesticate them have failed.

The ancient Greeks believed that the zebra was a cross between a tiger and a horse.  They called it hippotigris, or “horse tiger.”  Early Romans who tamed these animals for their circuses called them “the horses of the sun that resemble tigers.”

Historically, the Plains zebra had a much broader distribution than today.  Currently they are generally found only in protected areas such as preserves and parks.  Agricultural development and competition for habitat with domestic livestock have vastly reduced their natural habitat.  Zebras have been hunted for both their hides and meat.  Probably their most important current economic impact is on the tourism industry.  They are a mainstay attraction for guided tours and safaris.

The first zebra’s exhibited in the Zoo’s collection were Grant’s zebras and arrived in November 1955.  This species has successfully bred here.  Our current male (stallion) is named “Chad”.  He was sired by “Dynamite”, a male born here in 1970.