ZebraMania FAQs

Zebra Mania FAQs (Frequently Asked Questions)

Frequently-Asked-Questions about zebras brought to you by Carmel Winter and the members of the Zebra Mania Message Board. Post your kudos, comments and questions on the board! (http://members.boardhost.com/zebramania/)

Are zebras white with black stripes or black with white stripes?
What are the differences between the different types of zebras?
hi, my name is [fill in the blank] and i am doing a report on zebras tell me everything you know about zebras.
Can you help me find some pictures of zebras?
Why do zebras have stripes?
When are you going to update the ZebraMania site on Homestead? ( ZebraMania)

Zebra Mania FAQs

1. Are zebras white with black stripes or black with white stripes?

An owner in Texas writes:

I think many agree that since a zebra passes only its black stripes onto a hybrid and not any sort of white, it must have genes for black stripes. The white hairs growing on black skin has to be a recessive base coat.

An owner in NC writes:

My experience is with Plains zebras, specifically Grant's. If one compares individuals within the Grant's subspecies and then further compares them to other Plains zebras, a very obvious difference is in the number and density of stripes. But as the number of stripes decrease, the base color clearly becomes white, not black, pretty much forcing the conclusion that the stripes are black on a white background.

An owner in FL writes:

There is no doubt that my Grant Zebra has black skin with a coat that consists of dark stripes against a white background. The skin color can be clearly seen when she rubs off the hair and the black skin color is visible.

2. What are the differences between the different types of zebras?

An owner in NC writes:

My answer will be an unscientific one for the benefit of those most interested in general descriptions.

Grevy's Zebra

The Grevy's zebra is the largest of the zebras, being about the size of a small horse. The size of its ears (proportionally larger) and their shape (broader)is also different from that of other zebras. But the most distinctive characteristic of Grevy's is their very narrow stripes. While this would not be technically accurate, one's first impression might be that their stripes are half as wide as those of other zebras.

Plains Zebra

The plains zebras (the best known being Grant's, Chapman's and Damaras or Damarland's)are about the size of a large pony, considerably smaller than a Grevy's zebra. They have wider stripes that vary in color from a clearly brown appearance to a dark black. Their ears are not as large as those of the Grevy's zebra but are still larger than those of a horse. Information would seem to indicate that they are less aggressive than Grevy's might typically be.

Mountain Zebra

Mountain zebras are less well understood by most people, including me, because they are rarer. From information I have gathered, I conclude that they are slightly smaller than the Plains zebras. However, the primary distinguishing characteristic seems to be their dewlap. This is a loose flap of skin on the under side of their neck that does not exist with any of the other zebras.

An owner in FL writes:

There are 3 Zebra species (Family: Equidae):

Grevy - largest, approx 5'
Mountain - smallest, approx 4'
Plains - larger, approx 4'6 (Burchell, Grant)

Each Zebra specie has a different stripe pattern, and no two individuals within a specie have exactly the same markings:

The Grevy - has narrow stripes set closely together. Horizontal stripes on the haunches, shoulders and legs are short and fine and extend all the way down the legs to the hooves.
The Mountain - has wider stripes than the Grevy particularly on the rump.
The Plains - has the widest stripes and is the only one with stripes that wrap around from the back to the belly. In the other two species, the underside is completely or mainly white. The Plains is the only specie that sometimes has faint grey markings called 'shadow stripes' between the main black stripes on its sides.
The Quagga - stripes on head and neck, but often had none on its sides and hindquarters, lived in South Africa until the l870's when it was hunted to extinction.

The webscribe writes:

This excerpt from Genetics of the Horse is just a hint at the wealth of information provided about equines and breeding.

Equine species and chromosome numbers
Scientific Name	Common Name	Chromosome Number
Equus prezwalski	Mongolian wild horse	66
Equus caballus	Domestic horse	56
Equus hemionus	Mongolian wild ass	56
Equus kiang	Tibetan wild ass
Equus onager	Persian wild ass	56
Equus asinus	Donkey or domestic ass	62
Equus zebra	Zebra of Cape Colony	32
Equus grevyi	Somililand zebra	46
Equus burchelli	African zebra	44
Genetics of the Horse Second Edition by William E. Jones DVM, Ph.D & Ralph Bogart Ph.D © 1971 Caballus Publishers, Box 2307, Fort Collins, CO 80521

Interesting links on topic:

3. hi, my name is [fill in the blank] and i am doing a report on zebras tell me everything you know about zebras.

The webscribe writes:

You have come to the right place! The answers to these Frequently Asked Questions and the links provided tell you what we all know. It is your job to write your report in your own words from what these resources have taught you. If you have specific questions you can write your question to the board.

4. Can you help me find some pictures of zebras?

The webscribe writes:

We will be posting photos that visitors may use as long as:

You must include the copyright and credit of the person who included the photos. This will be clearly marked if the photos are not royalty-free or have not been donated to public use.
Please credit ZebraMania [www.nilemuse.com/zebraFAQ] as the source of the information.
All images from Katz' Gallery are for viewing only unless you get written permission from the artist.

Zebra photos provided by ZebraMania members [page 1 | page 2]

Zebra photos page formatted for older/alternate browsers [page 1 | page 2]

5. Why do zebras have stripes?

The webscribe writes:

This question is addressed in a link provided above by a ZebraMania board member:
www.duke.edu/~carl/pattern/zebra_notes.htm

6. When are you going to update the ZebraMania site on Homestead? (ZebraMania)

The webscribe writes:

Alas, never. Homestead went to a pay-only mode but kindly maintains the first few pages of their original free pages. These original ZebraMania pages are frozen in time until Homestead tires of hosting them.