THE HORSE FAMILY. 



S3 



have a small head, moderately large ears, and 

 short straight mane. The middle line of the 

 back is somewhat curved downwards as in the 

 horse; the tail has little hair at the root, but 

 ends in a long tuft; the hoofs are elegant, but 

 exceptionally broad behind. A dark stripe 

 always runs along the middle line of the back 

 as far as the tail. The transverse dark stripes 

 are differently distributed in the three known 

 species, which all inhabit Africa south of the 



Sahara. It has been observed that the herds 

 of these beautiful and fleet animals live on a 

 good understanding with certain antelopes, 

 and still more with ostriches, and thus derive 

 advantage from the watchfulness of these 

 comrades. A few specimens have been tamed, 

 but they mostly remain savage and intractable, 

 much given to biting. 



The Zebra. (Hippotigris Zebra {Equus 

 Zebra)), figure 148, frequents chiefly hilly 



Fig. 149. — The African Wild Ass [Equus ttsniopus). page 54. 



regions. It is entirely marked with black 

 stripes on an almost white or yellowish 

 ground. The legs are ringed down to the 

 hoofs, and the mane is composed of alter- 

 nate black and white stripes. The tail is 

 black. It is the rarest species in our men- 

 ageries. The Jardin d Acclimatisation at 

 Paris has a well-trained pair which draws a 

 carriage. 



The Dauw [Hippotigris {Equus) Biirchellii), 

 PI. XXI., is distinguished from the former 

 species by having the legs and feet not ringed 

 but of a uniform light colour like the ground 

 colour of the body. The stripes on the body 

 are broader, directed obliquely backwards, 

 and forked at their lower ends. The head 



presents pretty much the same mingling of 

 colours as in the zebra. 



A third species, the Quagga {Hippotigris 

 {Eqmis) quagga) is brownish above, white 

 underneath. The tail, which is completely 

 covered with bushy hair, and the ears are 

 white. The rather broad brown stripes attain 

 a considerable length only on the neck and 

 shoulders, gradually diminishing in length on 

 the back. The whole of the hinder part of 

 the body as well as the legs remain unstriped. 



It is these two latter species that are gener- 

 ally seen in menageries. They are more 

 easily tamed than the zebra, and it is said 

 that in the South African colonies individuals 

 caught young are associated with herds of 



