Zebras By Meagan Nahrwold Picture Source

The Basics; Zebras are native of Africa. They elong to the Equidae family. Horses, and donkeys are also in this family. Zebras are separated into three different species. The Plains Zebra, The Grevy's Zebra, and the Mountain Zebra. The most common zebra is the Plains Zebra. Grevy's Zebra is named after Jules Grevy, a French President. Grevy's and Mountain Zebras are considered endangered. Plain Zebras are located in the dry grasslands of south-eastern Africa. The Mountain Zebras are found in southwest Africa and Grevy's Zebra is located in Ethiopia and Kenya. They are separated by their size, stripe patterns, and structure. The Grevy's Zebra is the largest of the three. The Mountain Zebra is the smallest in size. Plains Zebras have shorter legs. Plains Zebra has stripes covering their whole body, belly and back. The Mountain and Grevy's Zebras have white bellys. Plains Zebras also have 'shadow stripes' or gray stripes between the black ones. Mountain Zebras have wide stripes. The Grevy's Zebra has narrow, closely located stripes. Picture Source

Habitat and Diet. Picture Source Zebras live in a wide range of habitats. These include, mountains, hills, grasslands, and drylands. Plains Zebras like the grasslands with plenty of trees and plenty of water sources. Mountain Zebras live in the mountains, ironically enough, mainly for the cooler climate. They are considered experts at climing. Grevy's Zebras are found in desert like conditions with little shurbs and hot climates. Herbivores are the family zebras fall into diet wise. They mainly feed on grass, leaves, and the barks of trees. Zebras have a large diet and need plenty of food to fulfill their nutrition needs. Most of the time you see zebras, they will be chewing on their food.

Reproduction and Birth. Image Source The normal reproduction age for female zebras is about 3 years. Males can only breed when they are around 5 or 6 years old. Normal pregnancy takes 12 months and produces a single offspring. A newborn zebra is called a foal, is born with brown stripes and can stand after birth. Life span for zebras is around 30 years and wild zebras account for about 12 years of life expectancy.

What Zebras Enjoy There are many hobbies Zebras enjoy, they include; *Eating. *Running in groups. *Swimming in shallow ponds. *Sleeping under trees. *Climibing mountains. * and interacting with other species.

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Meagan. Last update; December 16, 2009.