The Living Animals of the World, Volume I: Mammals

Photo by Percy Ashenden.

BURCHELL'S ZEBRA AT HOME.

This excellent photograph was taken in South Africa, and shows these animals in their native state

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of the World The Living Animals

Grevy's zebra is, as a rule, an inhabitant of open or thinly wooded country, and it appears to avoid anything in the nature of thick cover. In Central Somaliland Major Swayne met with it on low plateaux some 2,500 feet above sea-level, the sides of which fell in broken ravines to the river-valleys. This country is described as broken and hilly, and here Grevy's zebras were met with in small droves of about half a dozen. In the country between Mount Kenia and Lake Eudolph, Mr. A. H. Neumann frequently met with herds of Grevy's and Burchell's zebras consorting together. The contrast between the two species when thus seen ponies.side by side was very marked, the former animals looking like horses among a flock of Mr. Neumann never observed stallions of the two species fighting together, but on the other hand he states that the stallions of the larger species fight viciously amongst themselves for possession of the mares. Grevy's zebras seem never to collect in large herds, more than twenty, or at the outside thirty, being very seldom seen together.

Although this species is an inhabitant of arid plains and bare stony hills where the herbage is short, it requires to drink daily, and is never therefore found at any great distance from water. The cry of Grevy's zebra is stated to be quite different from that of Burchell's. Mr. Neumann describes it as a very hoarse kind of grunt, varied by something approaching to a whistle, the grunts being long drawn out, and divided by the shrill whistling sound, as if the latter were made by draw- Photo by J. T. Newman'] [Berkliamsted. ing in the breath THE HON. WALTER ROTHSCHILD'S TEAM OF ZEBRAS. which had been ex-to break inMr. Rothschild was practically the first Englishman zebras to harness. At one time these animals pelled during the were be untamable. quite thought to sustained grunt. Like all other species of the genus to which they belong, Grevy's zebras, especially the mares when in foal, become very fat at certain seasons of the year, and their flesh is much appreciated both by natives and lions, the latter preying on them and their smaller congeners, Burchell's zebras, in preference to any other animal, now that the rinderpest has almost exterminated the great herds of buffalo which once roamed in countless numbers all over East Central Africa.

BURCHELL'S ZEBRA once inhabited the whole of South-western, South-eastern, Central, and Eastern Africa from the Orange Eiver to Lake Eudolph; and though it has long ceased to it is still the most numerous and the bestexist in the more southerly portions of its range, known of all the species of zebra.

The typical form of this species was first met with early last century by Dr. Burchell in Southern Bechuanaland. In this form the legs are white below the knees and hocks, and the body-stripes do not join the median stripe of the belly. In examples met with farther north the legs are striped down to the hoofs and the body-stripes join the belly-stripe. South of

Photo by Charles Reid, Wishaw, N.B.

HIGHLAND CATTLE.

These magnificent cattle are bred in large numbers in the Scottish Highlands, whence they are brought to the richer pastures of England to fatten for the market.

UNIV. OF

CALIFORNIA

UNIV. OF

CALIFORNIA

The Horse Tribe 193

the Zambesi all forms of Burchell's zebra seem to have faint markings, known as shadow-stripes, on the pale yellow ground-colour of the spaces between the broad black stripes. North of the Zambesi varieties are met with in which these shadow-stripes are wanting. As, however, the differences between all the various sub-species of BurchelL's zebra are superficial and not structural, and as, moreover, the habits of these animals seem to be the same in every part of their widely extended range, I shall henceforth speak of them as one species.

Burchell's zebra is without the small horizontal bars on the hindquarters, which in the mountain-zebra connect the dorsal stripe with the uppermost of the broad longitudinal bands running across the flanks. Its ears, too, are smaller than in the latter species, and its mane fuller. In size Burchell's zebra is intermediate between the mountain-zebra and Grevy's zebra, standing from thirteen to thirteen and a half ha.nds at the shoulder.

By permission of Mr. William Cross] [Liverpool.

BURCHELL'S ZEBRA, CHAPMAN'S VARIETY.

This zebra is one of several trained in Mr. Cross's well-known establishment at Liverpool. Mr. Cross has been very successful in breaking in zebras, and is frequently to be seen driving a pair about Liverpool.

Where they have not been shot down, Burchell's zebras often live in large herds of from fifty to over a hundred together. I have met with them almost at the level of the sea, as in the Pungwe district of South-east Africa, and all over the high plateaux of the interior up to a height of 5,000 feet above sea-level. They are partial to sparsely forested country intersected by open glades, but also frequent open plains entirely devoid of trees or bush, having been once numerous on the open downs of the "Western Transvaal and Orange Eiver Colony. They hills.never live in dense jungle, but I have met with them frequently amongst broken rugged Burchell's zebras are both fleet and enduring, but I have often galloped right amongst a herd of them when mounted on a fast horse, and in good ground. In broken, hilly, and stony ground, however, no horse can live with a Burchell's zebra. The hoofs of this species seem made for running in rocky ground, being deeply hollowed and as hard as iron.

I have always found the presence of Burchell's zebras a sure indication that water was not 25

far distant, and it is my experience that these animals require to drink daily, and never wander more than a few miles away from the pool or river they frequent. This species of zebra may often be seen in Southern Africa in company with other animals, such as buffaloes, blue wildebeests, elands, gemsbucks, roan and sassaby antelopes, and ostriches, and I have upon several occasions seen them come up to domestic cattle and horses. They are naturally not very wary, and in parts of the country where they have not been much molested are often very inquisitive, and will come Photo by York d: Son] [3 trotting quite close up to a caravan, MARE AND FOAL OF BURCHELL'S ZEBRA. provided they do not get the scent These animals breed regularly in captivity. of human beings. Foals of this ; nor do I believe thatspecies are easily caught, and become at once very tame and confiding adult Burchell's zebras are such vicious animals as is generally supposed, since I have seen several which were very quiet and well broken, whilst even the half-broken animals, which were at one time used on one of the coach-lines in the Transvaal, did not appear very vicious.

As with Grevy's zebra, the flesh of the species under consideration is much appreciated both by natives and Hons. I have often seen the fat on the quarters of the mares quite an inch thick. It is of a dark yellow colour, and too rich to suit the stomach of a European. The meat is rather sweet in taste, but if fried with bacon not at all unpalatable. Professor Ewart has lately carried out a very interesting series of experiments on the hybrid-ising of zebras and horses. The results were very satisfactory. The zebra cross proved to be very hardy creatures, capable of wintering in the open on the hills of Scotland. The scientific data obtained were of singular value, as showing the effect of crossbreeding on subsequent generations of foals of the same mother. It has long been believed that the influence of the first sire was seen in foals of which other animals were subsequently the fathers. Thus, if a white mare threw a foal to a black stallion, it was considered that her subsequent progeny would occasionally be black, and instances were freely quoted to support this theory. The scientific name of "telegony" was given to this supposed influence of previous sires on future offspring. Professor Ewart's experiments, in which pony mares were first mated with a zebra and afterwards with horses, show that this

Photo by Norman B. Smith, Esq. theory of telegony is erroneous. The foals sired afterwards by ponies and horses showed no trace BURCHELL'S ZEBRA. This species is occasionally domesticated and driven in South whatever of zebra stripes, but were normal pony Africa, as it is not injured by the tsetse fly. foals, and not altered either in shape or disposition.

The Horse Tribe 195

The QUAGGA, which became extinct about thirty years ago, never had a very extended range, but in the early part of the last century it existed in great numbers on all the upland plains of the Cape Colony to the west of the Kei Eiver, and in the open treeless country lying between the Orange and Vaal Rivers. North of the Vaal it appears to have been unknown.

The quagga seems to have been nearly allied to Burchell's zebra especially to the most southerly form of that species but was much darker in general colour, being of a dark rufous brown on the neck and upper- Photo by Percy Ashenden.ZEBRAS ON TABLE MOUNTAIN. parts of the body, becoming Another South African photograph. Xoiice Cape Town in the far distance. lighter on the sides, and fading off to white beneath and behind. Instead of being striped, too, over the whole body, it was only strongly banded on the head and neck, the dark brown stripes becoming fainter on the size and build, inshoulders and dying away in spots and blotches. On the other hand, in the appearance of its mane, ears, and tail, and in general habits, it seems to have nearly toresembled its handsomer relative. The barking neigh " qua-ha-ha, qua-ha-ha " seems, too, is pronounced in South Africahave been the same in both species. The word " quagga " " qua-ha," and is of Hottentot origin, being an imitation of the animal's neighing call. To-day Burchell's zebras are invariably called Qua-has by both Boers and British colonists.

WILD ASSES.

The true asses are without stripes on the head, neck, and body, with the exception of a dark streak down the back from the mane to the tail, which is present in all members of the group, and in some cases a dark band across the shoulders and irregular markings on the legs. In Africa the wild ass is only found in the desert regions of the north-eastern portion of that continent, being an inhabitant of Abyssinia, Somaliland, Gallaland, the Soudan, and the arid districts bordering the Red Sea. The form of wild ass found in Somaliland differs in some respects from [Notting Hill. its near relative of the Nubian Desert, QUAGGA. in that it is of a paler colour, has the