Hartmann's Mountain Zebra
Basic Information:
Scientific Name: Equus zebra hartmannae
Habitat: Mountain Zebra live in the mountains, dry-rocky-hilly regions, slopes, and plateaus of coastal Namibia and southern Angola.
Diet: Being herbivores, mountain zebras eat grasses, leaves, and shrubs.
Size: 3.7 to 4.9 feet tall / 6.8 to 8.5 feet long
Weight: 515 to 620 pounds
Lifespan: 12.3 years for males & 15.2 years for females according to AZA Species Survival Statistics
Distribution Map:
I.U.C.N. Conservation Status:
What does this mean?
Vulnerable – a species determined by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (I.U.C.N.) to possess a high risk of extinction as a result of rapid population declines of 30 to more than 50 percent over the previous 10 years (or three generations), a current population size of fewer than 1,000 individuals, or other factors.
Our Hartmann's Mountain Zebra:
Rundu (Male) – Born December 28, 2011
Zecora (Female) – Born November 28, 2013
Zara (Female) – Born August 5, 2022
About Hartmann's Mountain Zebra:
There are two species of mountain zebras: Cape and Hartmann’s. Cape mountain zebras can be found up to 2,000 meters above sea level, but move to lower elevations in the winter. Hartmann’s mountain zebras occupy an arid region in a mountainous transition zone on the edge of the Namib Desert. Surface water is patchy in this area and, as a result, must wander between the mountains and sand flats in order to find patches of grass.
Did You Know?!
- Mountain zebras are mainly crepuscular meaning that they are active in the early morning and evening.
- During cold weather, mountain zebras shelter in wooded areas or caves and go to east-facing slopes to warm up in the morning sunshine.
- Hartmann’s mountain zebras live on the edge of the Namib Desert, and as a result they have to range widely to find surface water. They sniff out water and paw 3 feet down below the sand of dry river beds to uncover it. This activity benefits many desert animals.
- Hartmann’s mountain zebras are commonly found at play. Types of play include chasing, racing, play-fighting, and challenge games. Challenge games usually consist of nose-to-nose contact followed by mutual grooming. This serves to bond the participating zebras together.
- Mountain zebras act in response to the alarm signals of black wildebeest. However, they rarely respond to alarm signals of smaller antelopes.
- A mountain zebra’s night vision is thought to be about as good as an owl’s!
- No two zebras are alike; each has a distinct stripe pattern, just like with human fingerprints.
- A mountain zebra’s heart weighs three times that of a plains zebra to accommodate the increased number of oxygen-carrying red blood cells needed in a high altitude environment.
- Mountain zebra can gallop up to 40 miles per hour and jump a 6-foot wall.