BURCHELL'S ZEBRA 



(Equus burchelli) 



Burchell's Zebra, nowadays, is the best known of all the Zebras, as 

 it is the commonest and most widely spread, inhabiting open, dry 

 country, in Africa generally, south of the Sahara. In form and size 

 this Zebra is intermediate between the Horse and Ass, though inclin- 

 ing more to the latter, especially in having the root of the tail covered 

 with close, short hair, and in being without the bare, hard patches 

 called "chestnuts" on the hind-legs, though they are present and of 

 large size upon the front pair. 



In certain details of its beautiful markings, it varies a great deal ; 

 the " shadow-stripes " between the main black .stripes are absent in 

 some local races, in some of which the legs may be striped right down 

 to the hoofs, while in others they are plain. Hence many sub-species 

 have been named ; but there is considerable variation even among 

 individuals of the same herd. It has even been suggested that the 

 Quagga of South Africa {Equus quagga), now unfortunately extinct, 

 was merely an extreme form of this Zebra, which is still known to the 

 Boers as " Bonte (variegated) Quagga." The true Quagga was striped 

 with brown, and this only on the fore-quarters, the legs and hind- 

 quarters being plain. 



. The gaily-striped pattern of the Zebra looks very striking in a 

 menagerie, but those who have seen the animal wild say that at a little 

 distance the dark and light stripes combine. to produce a grey effect, so 

 that the creature is not conspicuous at all, by colour, though its lively 

 movements and loud shrieking bray make it a noticeable animal. 



Zebras, like all the wild members of the Horse tribe, live in herds, 

 under the control of the master stallion ; their food is grass, and they 

 avoid bushy localities, their great enemy being the Lion, who prefers 

 the Zebra to anything else he can get in the way of game. Except, 



