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Aberrant coat patterns in the Plains Zebra

23 Jan 2008

Location:    Vumbura Plains (NG25, Botswana), Etosha National Park (Namibia), Makalolo Plains (Hwange National Park, Zimbabwe)
Date:         15 January 08
Observers: Peter Anderson, Courtney Johnson, Martin Benadie, Rosta Janik & Matt Copham

The Plains Zebra Equus zebra super-species contains a number of subspecies that occur through east and southern Africa and which are distinguished based on their coat patterns; the degree of so-called shadow striping, the thickness of the stripes and width between them and so on. This is what distinguishes Burchell's Zebra Equus zebra burchelli from Crawshay's Zebra E. z. crawshayi and so on. A number of hybrids between the various subspecies are recognised in particular areas of geographical overlap between the core distribution areas but every so often completely aberrant coat patterns emerge in isolated populations that are not related to hybridisation.

Over the past couple of years a number of individuals of this nature have emerged in various areas covered by Wilderness Safaris guides in our concessions and also in national parks which we visit. These coat patterns display varying degrees of melanism and aberration and allow insight into the lives of particular individual zebra given the ease of certain identification.

The first of these photographed by Peter Anderson in the Makalolo Plains traversing area in Hwange National Park, Zimbabwe, has been nicknamed 'Marble' by the guides. He has been around for 5-6 years now and is well known to Wilderness Safaris staff. Depending on the time of year it moves around with other zebra herds as well as blue wildebeest between Ngamo Plains, Makalolo Plains, Linkwasha Vlei, Somavundla Pan and even as far as Ngweshla. The last location, together with Linkwasha Vlei tend to be the dry season headquarters, while in summer, the fertile plains of Ngamo are the main area frequented by this animal.

Two other very striking examples of partial melanism come from adult mares photographed in Etosha National Park by Martin Benadie and Rosta Janik. Both animals show a merging of the stripes on the flanks giving a very dark appearance. Striping on the face is also unusually pale, while the shadow stripes are quite prominent in comparison with the Hwange animal. The first photo was taken by Martin Benadie at Etosha waterhole north east of Halali Camp in July 2007, while the second, by Rosta Janik, was taken between Salvadora Spring and Halali Camp on 9 November 2007. On this latter occasion the zebra was associating with a congregation of plains game numbering around 300 wildebeest, scattered springbok and about 500 zebra.

A similar pattern, albeit more chocolatey and far more extensive across the body, was found in a young zebra foal in the Kwedi Concession in the Okavango Delta, Botswana, in late 2005. The foal was well known to guides, but its short life (it disappeared from the area after only a few months and is presumed to have been preyed on) may indicate the risks of unusual markings in a species that is thought to rely on disruptive patterning to help avoid predation. Of additional interest here is the very obviously broader stripes on the foal's mother that may have hinted at the potential for the increased melanism in the youngster. A second chocolatey foal born to this same mare in late 2006 provides support for both theories, it too having been killed by predators at a relatively early stage in its life.

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