Grévy's zebra

The Grévy's zebra was first described by French naturalist Émile Oustalet in 1882. He named it after Jules Grévy, then president of France, who, in the 1880s, was given one by the government of Abyssinia. Traditionally, this species was classified in the subgenus Dolichohippus with plains zebra and mountain zebra in Hippotigris. Fossils of zebra-like equids have been found throughout Africa and Asia in the Pliocene and Pleistocene deposits. The latter, in particular is very similar to the Grévy's zebra and may have been its ancestor. Zebras appear to be a monophyletic lineage and recent (2013) phylogenies have placed Grévy's zebra in a sister taxon with the plains zebra. In areas where Grévy's zebras are sympatric with plains zebras, the two may gather in same herds and fertile hybrids do occur. ==Description==

Grévy's zebra is the largest of all wild equines. It is in head-body length, with a tail long, stands high at the withers, and weighs . Grévy's zebra differs from the other two zebras in its more primitive characteristics. It is particularly mule-like in appearance; the head is large, long, and narrow with elongated nostril openings; the ears are very large, rounded, and conical, and the neck is short but thick. The muzzle is ash-grey to black in colour, and the lips are whiskered. The mane is tall and erect; juveniles have a mane that extends to the length of the back and shortens as they reach adulthood. As with all zebra species, Grévy's zebra's pelage has a black and white striping pattern. The stripes are narrow and close-set, broader on the neck, and extending to the hooves. The belly and the area around the base of the tail lack stripes and are just white in color, which is unique to the Grévy's zebra. Foals are born with brown and white striping, with the brown stripes darkening as they grow older. ==Range and ecology==

Grévy's zebra largely inhabits northern Kenya, with some isolated populations in Ethiopia. It lives in Acacia-Commiphora bushlands and barren plains. Grévy's zebras rely on grasses, forbs (such as legumes), and browse for nutrition. They commonly browse when grasses are not plentiful. Their hindgut fermentation digestive system allows them to subsist on diets of lower nutritional quality than that necessary for ruminant herbivores. Grevy's zebras can survive up to a week without water, but will drink daily when it is plentiful. They often migrate to better watered highlands during the dry season. ==Behaviour and life history==

Adult stallions mostly live in territories during the wet seasons but some may stay in them year round if there's enough water left. An oestrous mare may visit as many as four territories a day The resident stallions of territories will try to subdue the entering mares with dominance rituals and then continue with courtship and copulation. This is a useful adaptation for a species whose mares mate polyandrously. Bachelors or outside territorial stallions sometimes "sneak" copulation of mares in another stallion's territory. Gestation of the Grévy's zebra normally lasts 390 days (13 months), The foals will not hide, so they can be vulnerable to predators. To adapt to a semi-arid environment, Grévy's zebra foals have longer nursing intervals and wait until they are three months old before they start drinking water. Although offspring become less dependent on their mothers after half a year, associations with them continue for up to three years. ==Relationship with humans==

in 1882 The Grévy's zebra was known to the Europeans in antiquity and was used by the Romans in circuses. At least one specimen of the rare animal was imported into Rye, New York in the United States by Warner M. van Norden and his wife Grace Talcott as part of an endeavor to hybridize the animal with horses to create a superior farm animal. A special "zebra house" was built for the red-striped animal and other zebras complete with steam heating. Four of the specimens are said to have been kept on the Jay Estate for a number of years. Status and conservation The Grévy's zebra is considered endangered. In 2008, it was estimated that there are less than 2,500 Grévy's zebras still living in the wild, further declining to fewer than 2,000 mature individuals in 2016. Nonetheless, the Grévy's zebra population trend was considered stable as of 2016. The Grévy's zebra is legally protected in Ethiopia. In Kenya, it is protected by the hunting ban of 1977. In the past, Grévy's zebras were threatened mainly by hunting for their skins which fetched a high price on the world market. However, hunting has declined and the main threat to the zebra is habitat loss and competition with livestock. Cattle gather around watering holes and the Grévy's zebras are fenced from those areas. ==References==