Zebras!
The Horse with Stripes
By Ava.C 
Introduction!
Scientific name is Equus
Quagga
They live 20-30 years in the
wild
In captive Zebras have
reached 40 years old
They are endangered
because farmers are
building crops so they are
taking away their home
and humans are hunting
for their skin to make rugs,
coats and blankets
They are mammals
Physical Features!
They are 7 to 9 feet tall
They weigh between 440 to 990
The head has large round ears
like a mule
Black with white stripes
The stripes go all the way under
their belly
Looks like a horse with stripes
The stripes are vertical on their
body
More Physical Features!
On their legs the stripes are horizontal
Zebras are not as large as a big horse
The hair along a zebra’s neck stands up instead of
hanging down like a horse’s mane
When their mane comes up to their head it looks like a
mohawk
Their eyes are located on the side of their head, widely
spaced
Even More Physical Features!
Short legs
Some have narrow stripes all the
way down to their hooves
Their hooves are similar to
horses hooves
They are odd toed that means
they have a odd number of toes
on each hoof
Black or dark muzzle
Long snout
Not 2 zebras have the same
stripes
Habitat!
Savannas and grasslands
from Sudan to northern
Zimbabwe in eastern Africa
The only home they have
is in Africa
Some zebras live in dry or
hilly areas
There are lots in South
Africa because it’s warm
and has lots of open land
What Climate Zebras like!
In the Winter the temperature can get
as low as 40 degrees below zero
In the Summer it can get up to 70
degrees
It rains 10 inches a year
It is sunny 90 percent of a year
Landforms!
• Rocky terrain because some of their
predators can’t run that fast on rocky
places
• Open woodlands
• Grassy mountain slopes
What Foods Zebras Eat!
Zebras are plant eating animals
called herbivores.
They love to eat:
Grass
Shrubs
Twigs
Leaves
Fruit
Buds
Hunting!
Prey of…
Lion
Leopard
Hyena
Cheetah
Hunting Dogs
Predator to…
none because zebras
are herbivores
How They Act!
They are social animals
Zebras sleep standing only if a
group of zebras are there to warn
them for danger
If they spot an animal they will
nay or bark loudly to warn others
of danger
They live in herds
They wrestle with their necks and
kick with their front feet
Zebras are alert and active
Babies!
Baby’s can stand up for 20
minutes after it’s born
It can run when it’s only 1
hour old
Zebras foals are born with
brown and white stripes
They stay in their mothers
belly for 12-13 months
Young zebras live with there
parents for 3 years
Physical Adaptations!
Their furry body helps them in the winter to
stay warm
Its long legs help them run really fast
Their hard feet called hooves help them
when they are running so they don’t step on
something
Their shiny coat reflects heat so they don’t
get too hot or dehydrated
Their black and white stripes help them
camouflage so that their predators can’t find
them
Their front teeth are more delicate than the
back teeth so zebras rarely use their teeth for
fighting because they could get injured
Physiological Adaptations
• Their running muscles are near the
shoulders rather near the leg because
all the weight would slow them down
• They have sharp teeth to help them
cut grass-- they are like scissors
• Their long necks help them reach the
grass on the ground
• Their flat back teeth help them to
crush and grind the grass
• Their night vision is as good as an owl’s
which helps them see their predators.
Behavioral Adaptation!
• Kicks animals or runs away quickly
to stay safe
• A frightened zebra shows its
teeth to scare off predators and
their ears are forward
• Not all zebras live in groups, lots
of zebras live alone. When they
live in groups they protect each
other. All the males team up and
protect the females and babies
• The families always stay together
and they never get lost. This
helps keep them safe.
• If there is a lot of food they are
happy to hang around the
savanna. But, if there is a
shortage of food they migrate to a
new savanna.
The Zebra’s Future!
Mountain zebras and Grevy
zebras are endangered, but
the Burchell zebra is extinct
30 years ago there were
100,000 zebra. Now there
are close to 2,000 zebras left
Since the Burchell zebra is
extinct they were one of the
most popular zebras. Now
that they are gone there are
not that many zebras left
Fun Facts!
There are 3 different kinds
of zebras: Mountain
zebras, Plain zebras and
Grevy zebras
A group of zebras is called
a herd
Zebras are part of the
horse family
They run 35 miles a hour
If a zebra and cheetah
were racing in an obstacle
course, the zebra would
win. Cheetahs can only
run fast when they run
straight.
They never stop growing