Zebra, Zebra, Zebra!
View allAll Photos Tagged Zebra.
Looking down from 52nd floor of Tokyo Tower i saw many pedestrian crossings...i like the pedestrian friendly roads in Tokyo
Native to the grasslands of Africa there are said to be three species of Zebra though some experts say that there are four. The coat pattern of black stripes have been suggested that they provide camouflage or will confuse predators. The most recent explanation is that the stripes perform a social role which could possibly help individuals to identify each other.
Heliconius Charithonia.
Zebra Longwing Butterfly seen at the butterfly house, Charlecote Park, Warwick, England.
Background texture/edit Topaz Studio
Plains zebra (Equus quagga) mom and foal. Ol Pejeta conservancy, Kenya. Conservation status: Near Threatened
Are zebras black with white stripes or white with black stripes?
Seriously though, they used to be believed to be white with black stripes because the underbelly is white. They are now however believed to be black with white stripes. Melanocyte skin cells "activate" the dark hair pigmentation. In the case of the white stripes this development is inhibited. Therefore the colour of the hair/fur is black and the white stripes are a lack of colouration.
Kruger National Park.
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Northwest Zimbabwe
from the archives
equus quagga ( formerly known as equus burchellii )
Plains Zebra or Common Zebra
zebra of steppezebra
zèbre des plaines ou zèbre commun
Steppenzebra
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Safari photos tend to be dominated by the lions, leopards, hyenas, elephants & hippos, mass migrations, all amazing animals. But Zebras, these wild striped horses are the quiet underdogs. This guy was hanging out with his herd, known as a dazzle, grazing as they do for 70% of the day, quietly but warily amongst the trees. I've seen them in zoos but seeing them on the wild plains of Sabi Sands Africa, potential prey, as everything is on the plains, made me see them differently. They are an amazing animal. Unique. Fascinating.
Fun fact #1 - they have black skin, and grow the white stripes (there is probably an official scientific word for that but I understand "grow")
Fun Fact #2 - a sad one, but fact of life , 50% won't survive to see maturity. As our guide told us once, nothing dies of old age on the plains. Life at its rawest.
On a happier note, they can bray like donkeys, that would be a fun thing to do :)
Happy Friday & happy braying out there. Go on try it, its fun :))
... still blooming in our garden for a happy Sunday!
Zebra mallow / Garten-Malve 'Zebrina' (Malva sylvestris 'Zebrina')
in our garden - Frankfurt-Nordend
Burchell's Zebra (Equus quagga burchellii) foal. It is just beginning to have the shadow stripe that is characteristic of this southern subspecies of plains zebra.
Kirkman's Kamp, Sabi Sands, South Africa
Conservation Status: Near Threatened
From US Forest Service
The zebra longwing butterfly or zebra heliconian, Heliconius charithonia, is unmistakable with its long narrow wings, which are striped black and pale yellow. This species is common in Mexico and Central America and it is also found in most of Florida and in some areas of Texas, where it can be seen year round.
They fly slowly and gracefully and are not easily startled. They gather in roosts to spend the night returning to the same place daily; all this making it easy to observe them. After mating the female lays eggs on one of several species of passion flower plants Passiflora. The caterpillars feed on these plants and acquire some of their toxins; this makes them distasteful to predators. The striking colors and pattern of the adults advertise their toxicity (my addition - keeping predators away).
An unusual feature of the longwing, or heliconian, butterflies is that the adults are relatively long lived. Most other butterflies live only a few weeks, but heliconians continue to live and to lay eggs for several months. Their tropical or semitropical habitat makes this possible; furthermore the feeding habits of the adults are important in prolonging their lives. The adults feed on nectar of flowers, like most other butterflies, but a special characteristic of heliconian butterflies is that they can also feed on pollen.
Most butterflies can only sip fluids with their specialized mouth parts, but the heliconian butterflies take some pollen as well as nectar. Their saliva enables them to dissolve the pollen and to take their nutrients. Pollen is very nutritious, rich in proteins, unlike nectar which contains almost no proteins, just sugars. This diet allows the butterflies to prolong their lives and also enables them to continue producing eggs for several months. As a consequence they are more dependent on flowers than other types of butterflies and this makes them good pollinators.
Again, my addition - Here the Zebra is feeding on a Firebush.
I'll add a photo showing the full wing below. If you increase the photo above you can see the red dots close to the body of the Zebra.
The zebra longwing butterfly or zebra heliconian, Heliconius charithonia, is unmistakable with its long narrow wings, which are striped black and pale yellow. This species is common in Mexico and Central America and it is also found in most of Florida and in some areas of Texas, where it can be seen year round. Occasionally it wanders farther north as far as South Carolina and some of the central states, although it is not likely to survive the cold. Florida designated this striking creature as its state butterfly in 1996.
A Zebra Jumping Spider on the garage wall. These spiders have a body length of 7mm.
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The zebra finch (Taeniopygia guttata) is a species of the family of the finches, which is assigned to the genus of the zebra finches. The Australian zebra finch, Taeniopygia guttata castanotis, is a very popular ornamental bird in Germany, the Timor zebra finch is only very rarely kept or even bred.
A plains zebra hears something suspicious as he stops to drink at a watering hole in Serengeti National Park in Tanzania. Photo from a 2017 safari. ©2017 John M. Hudson
The Zebra butterfly has characteristic black and yellow bands. The bottom has the same color pattern with red dots on the wing base.
Garden August 2021
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Lens: Nikkor 55.0-200.0 mm f/4.0-5.6
File Name: NZ6_1987