Zebra
The Zebra is one of the most unique and well known animals on the African plains due to its graphic stripe pattern. There are many different hypotheses as to what the “function” of it’s stripes are, but regardless, the Zebra is a beautiful animal to behold. There are 3 different species in the Zebra family: Mountain Zebra, Plains Zebra and Grevy’s Zebra. They all look quite similar but the Grevy’s Zebra is more solitary in the way it lives, while the Mountain and Plains varieties are more prone to living in closed groups led by a male stallion, his female harem and their young.
Zebras are venerated in many different cultures throughout the world. The have been found in African art and culture for thousands of years and in more recent history have become popular subjects in films, painting, children’s books, and various other media. Their ancient Latin name Hippotigris means “horse with stripes“.
As a member of the horse family, Zebras have also been crossbred with some close relatives in captivity. These hybrid species are referred to as Zebroids. Given the fact that Zebroids are usually infertile and often suffer from dwarfism, it seems these incestuous unions are not unlike the human version of having relations with your first cousin!
And because I love weird words, I wanted to share with you some new ones I discovered when reading about Zebras:
Zorse - a cross between a Zebra and a horse
Zoni- a cross between a Zebra and a pony
Zonkey - a cross between a Zebra and a donkey
Zebras are venerated in many different cultures throughout the world. The have been found in African art and culture for thousands of years and in more recent history have become popular subjects in films, painting, children’s books, and various other media. Their ancient Latin name Hippotigris means “horse with stripes“.
As a member of the horse family, Zebras have also been crossbred with some close relatives in captivity. These hybrid species are referred to as Zebroids. Given the fact that Zebroids are usually infertile and often suffer from dwarfism, it seems these incestuous unions are not unlike the human version of having relations with your first cousin!
And because I love weird words, I wanted to share with you some new ones I discovered when reading about Zebras:
Zorse - a cross between a Zebra and a horse
Zoni- a cross between a Zebra and a pony
Zonkey - a cross between a Zebra and a donkey