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| SCIENTIFIC
CLASSIFICATION |
|
| COMMON
NAME: |
Grevy's
zebra |
| KINGDOM: |
Animalia |
| PHYLUM: |
Chordata |
| CLASS: |
Mammalia |
| ORDER: |
Perissodactyla |
| FAMILY: |
Equidae |
| GENUS
SPECIES: |
Equus
(horse) grevyi |
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| DESCRIPTION: |
Dark
brown stripes on the body are narrow, positioned
close together, and do not cover the belly which
is white. Mane is tall and erect, unlike a horse's;
ears are large and donkey like with thick fur inside. |
|
| SIZE: |
1.25-1.5
m (4-5 ft.) at withers |
|
| WEIGHT: |
350-430 kg (780-950 lb.) |
|
|
|
| GESTATION: |
380-390
days |
| NURSING
DURATION |
foals
nurse for 6-13 months |
|
| SEXUAL
MATURITY: |
|
| MALE |
6
years |
| FEMALE |
2
years |
|
| LIFE
SPAN: |
20-25
years in the wild, 25-30 years in captivity |
|
| RANGE: |
Kenya
and Ethiopia |
|
| HABITAT: |
Semi-arid
scrub and grasslands |
|
| POPULATION: |
GLOBAL |
Unknown |
|
| STATUS: |
IUCN |
Not
listed |
| CITES |
Not
listed |
| USFWS |
Threatened |
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| |
|
|
| 1. |
Grevy's
zebras are unusual because they do not form long
lasting bonds like the plains zebras and horses.
Their group composition may change on an hourly
basis. |
|
|
| 2. |
Within
an hour after it is born, a foal can run with the
rest of the herd and can recognize its mother with
smell and sight. |
|
|
| 3. |
Stripes
may cause confusion by making it hard for a predator
to single out an individual. |
|
|
| 4. |
Each
zebra has a unique stripe pattern, like a person's
fingerprint. |
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| |
|
|
|
The
major threats to the Grevy's zebra are introduced
livestock that compete for grazing land and hunting
for zebra skins. Zebras are beneficial to other
wild grazers because they clear off the tops of
coarse grasses that are difficult for other herbivores
to digest. Also, zebras eat course grasses that
grow on marginal lands where cattle do not do
well.
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|
|
|
| |
|
|
| Elzenga,
Johan W., "Why Zebras are Striped." SWARA,
July-Aug. 1992, pp. 29-30. |
|
| Nowak,
Ronald (ed.). Walker's Mammals of the World.
Vol 2. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins Univ. Press,
1991. |
|
|
Rowen,
Mary, and Joshua Ginsberg. "Grevy's Zebra:
Equid of a Different Stripe." African
Wildlife Update, Jan.-Feb. 1994, p. 4.
|
|
| Stevens,
Jane E. "Zebras in Turmoil." International
Wildlife, Sept.-Oct. 1994, pp.6-12. |
|
| Walther,
Fritz R., Communication and Expression in Hoofed
Animals. Bloomington: Indiana University Press,
1984. |
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