Born October 9th at Zoo Basel in Switzerland, this Plain's Zebra foal was the zoo's first in four years! Perhaps because of the novelty, the other zebras in the exhibit were extremely interested in the new foal and arguably jealous, as they made some attempts to steal the baby from its mother. However, the protective mother zebra stood her ground and the herd has settled into a comfortable and supportive dynamic.
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What an amazingly beautiful animal.
Posted by: frannipanni | November 11, 2009 at 01:19 PM
How in the wide world does a zebra steal a foal away from another zebra?
I'm just trying to visualise how the heck that would happen, and coming up empty.
Posted by: Raincitygirl | November 11, 2009 at 01:34 PM
Grevy's are spectacular animals!!!
Posted by: Liz | November 11, 2009 at 02:32 PM
Those aren't Grevy's zebras. :( Very cute though!
Posted by: Elizabeth | November 11, 2009 at 07:34 PM
Those of you who suspected this was a Plain's Zebra were correct. Our translation of the press release, in which they compared this foal to a Grevy's, was poor. Thanks for the tips.
Posted by: Andrew B | November 12, 2009 at 07:06 AM
I thought that in the zebra society there was no "adoption" so that if a zebra got separated from its mother then it would be all alone. That's why the mother is so protective in the early stages-- so that the baby can recognize its stripe pattern. But I guess at a zoo, things might work a bit differently!
Posted by: Elizabeth | November 12, 2009 at 12:38 PM
that is really interesting this is the first baby zebra in four years. does that mean previous mating attempts failed or there wasn't enough males? no wonder this baby is a novelty, and probably got all the femals in a "i want my own baby now" mood.
Posted by: eternalcanadian | November 16, 2009 at 02:28 AM