New Zebra Not 'Plain as Black and White'
February 25, 2015
On February 13th, Zoo Liberec welcomed its 90th Chapman’s Zebra! The female, named ‘Jin’, was born to mother, ‘Juou’.
Photo Credits: Zoo Liberec
Chapman’s Zebra is a subspecies of the plains zebra. Like their relatives, they are native to the savannah of north-east South Africa, north to Zimbabwe, west into Botswana, Namibia, and southern Angola.
The Chapman’s Zebra eats mainly grass and occasionally shrubs. They are distinguished by stripes on the lower halves of the legs, which break up into many irregular brown spots. When foals are born, they have brown stripes, and in some cases, adults do not develop the black coloration in their fur and keep the brown stripes.
Chapman’s Zebra are currently classified as “Least Concern” on the IUCN Red List, but they are at risk due to habitat destruction and illegal poaching.
The Zoo Liberec is the oldest in the area of former Czechoslovakia. It was founded in 1919. It was originally used, in part, as the winter quarters for circus animals.
Today, the zoo breeds more than 170 species with an overall number of 1000 individuals. More than 500 animals are registered in different European conservation programs, such as EEP, ESB and RDB. These national programs try to save species facing extinction.