The Plains Zebra

Deep ebony, blinding cream, these are the colors of the zebra. The zebra is one unique animal. Zebras are one of the marvelous animals in Africa.

About the size of a small horse, these amazing animals are about 50-53 inches in height. When a male zebra grows up, he can weigh up to 520 pounds! It's a good thing that the female zebra is friendly. It can weigh a whopping 510 pounds, almost as much as the male! Zebras usually do not attack unless threatened though, whew!

The large animal, the zebra, mates all year round, but mostly during the early rainy season. Eighteen male zebras battle it out with the dominant male at that certain time to see who has the rights to mate with the number one female. In three years, female zebras are able to mate, and the is able when he is about five.

Found mainly in the Southern Savanna, these hungry zebras can also be found in the arid plains of eastern Africa. They are also found in many national parks because hunters kill countless zebras for their picturesque fur, much as the elephant for its tusks. During the day, zebras are not as active as they are at night. The zebra easily adapts to just about anything Africa can throw at them, from poachers to food shortage. Therefore, one of the most successful herbivores in Africa.

These friendly zebras main predator is the lion. When attacked by a lion, the zebra makes it difficult to eat just one zebra, so it is kind of "all for one, and one for all!" as the Three Musketeers would say. Also, poachers present another problem. People are trying to stop the hunting of endangered animals, but as long as people have the right to bear arms, we will keep running into this horrible problem. The poachers get a large sum of money for killing these poor, defenseless, endangered animals, and selling their fur on the black market.

Zebras are Africa's most brilliant painted horses. They are truly astonishing animals. I think one should go see the zebras at the nearby Great Plains Zoo to get a real idea of what they look like. Thanks for reading my report on an extraordinary animal, The Plains Zebra.

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