Zebra hide Species
There are 4 species of Zebra found in Africa and below you will find facts on 2 of the Zebra species that we sell at zebrahides.com. We have facts on both the Burchell Zebra and the Hartmann Zebra.
Facts on Burchell Zebra
Scientific Name: Equus burchellii
The Burchell’s Zebra are not endangered and it is legal to sell or own a zebra skin.
The Burchell’s Zebra lives in small family units, which typically consist of one stallion and one mare with their foals. Non-breeding stallions occur in bachelor groups. Herd stallions are between four to 12 years old. The body stripes of the Burchell Zebra extend around the belly and stripes on the legs are less prominent, they measures 1.3 to 1.4 metres at the shoulder and weighs 300-320 Kg.
Burchell Zebra are predominantly a grazer, feeding in areas with short grass. They have a strong sensitive upper lip with which it gathers herbage by collecting the grass between the lip and the lower incisors before plucking the harvest. This species is the largest of the two distinct species inhabiting South Africa’s wild life domain The ranges of the Burchell’s Zebra inhabits savannahs, from treeless grasslands to open woodlands; they sometimes occur in tens of thousands in migratory herds on the Serengeti plains. Zebras are important prey for lions and hyenas, and to a lesser extent for hunting dogs, leopards and cheetahs. When a family group is attacked, the members form a semicircle, face the predator and watch it, ready to bite or strike should the attack continue. If one of the family is injured the rest will often encircle it to protect it from further attack.
Burchell’s zebra was thought to become extinct in 1918, when the last Burchell’s zebra died at the Berlin Zoo. But after many reports came from Africa about sightings of Burchell’s it showed that Burchell’s were not only still alive in the wild, but thriving in the areas of Etosha and Kwazulu-Natal.
Facts on Hartmann Zebra
Scientific Name: Equus zebra hartmannae
The Hartmann’s Zebra is a mountain zebra, indigenous to South Africa and Namibia and part of Angola.
The Hartmann’s Mountain Zebra is a fairly large-sized donkey-like member of the horse family, with a narrow body and narrow, fast-growing hooves. The Mountain Zebras are the only zebras with a dewlap – a pendulous fold of skin under the throat, which is commonly associated with bovines. There is a grid pattern on the rump which includes a series of short transverse stripes running perpendicular to the dorsal stripe, not found on any other equine. The legs are striped to the hooves, and the belly is white. The stripes are black. The widest stripes are seen on upper hind legs.
The mountain zebra is discernable from other zebra species by the thin and relatively close-together vertical black lines on its neck and torso, which are narrower and more numerous than those of Burchell’s zebra. Adult stallions over seven years of age, can weigh as much as 343 kg. Adult stallions are 1.5 m at the shoulders, with a tail length of 500 mm and ears 280 mm long. In order to cope with the attrition of rocky terrain, the hooves of this species grows extremely fast the Hartman’s mountain zebra is adapted to rugged, broken mountain escarpments, where herds rely on areas with permanent water sources and sufficient variety and quantities of grass fodder to sustain breeding populations.
Namibia is home to the largest population of Hartmann Zebra in the world and there are strict regulations in place to ensure the continual survival of this species. Namibian conservation authorities monitor the trade in both hunting and culling of this species and only allow for a certain amount of these Zebra’s to be removed from regulated game farms. Rest assured that when purchasing a quality zebra skin from Zebrahides.com, all legalities will be taken care of in a proper manner.
Other information
Zebra Facts
Some experts say that there are four species of zebras
- Grevy's zebra
- Plains zebra (Burchell Zebra)
- Mountain zebra
- Hartmann Zebra
and that Hartmann's zebra is a subspecies of mountain zebra. Other experts say Hartmann's zebra is a separate species. So depending who you ask, there are 3 or 4 species
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Perissodactyla
Family: A group of animals within an order...Equidae
Genus: A group of animals within a family...Equus
Scientific Name:
Equus zebra, Equus quagga, Equus grevyiCommon Name: Most widely used name for the species...Zebra
Location: Eastern and Southern Africa
Habitat: The specific area where the animal lives. Open grassland and plains
Colour: The colour of the animal's coat - Black, White, Brown
Skin Type: The protective layer of the animal - Hair
Size (L): How long (L) or tall (H) the animal is - 2m - 2.75m (6.6ft - 9ft)
Weight: The measurement of how heavy the animal is - 220kg - 405kg (485lbs - 893lbs)
Top Speed: 40kph (25mph)
Diet: What kind of foods the animal eats - Herbivore, Grasses, Leaves, Buds.
Predators: Other animals that hunt and eat the animal - Lions, Leopards, Hyenas
African Burchell Zebra