11 All About Pets • Volume 3 • Issue 2 • Jan–Apr 2023 Significance of the Stripe Pattern in Zebras There is a vast variety of striped animals in the animal kingdom. The tiger and the zebra are two such wellknown animals. The other not-so-common animals are the okapi, striped skunk, striped chipmunk, bongo, ring-tailed lemur, thirteen-lined squirrel, greater kudu, striped mouse, giant-striped mongoose, ferret, African wild ass, striped hyena, and coral snake. The stripes on the zebra and the tiger are similar in pattern, running vertically on their body. Each of these species are unique—the tiger is a predatory species, and the other, the zebra, is an herbivore, which is predated upon. Tigers are found in multiple terrains—from rainforests, grasslands, savannahs, temperate forests, deciduous forests, mangrove swamps, and in the forests of the Tundra. In comparison, Zebras are predominantly found in the African savannah and treeless woodlands. Therefore, it is natural that though the stripes on the animals are similar, they play different roles. Stripe Pattern on Animals in the Wild The stripes on the zebra serve various functions like thermoregulation, warding off flies, and protecting from predators. The stripes on the zebra are helpful in cooling the body. It is postulated that the black stripes help in trapping the heat during cold mornings, and the white stripes support in reflecting heat during the hotter daytime, thus helping in temperature regulation. The striped pattern disorients flies and they cannot land on the surface of the zebra. The flies cannot deaccelerate and seem to “bounce off” the body surface of the zebras. The stripes also help zebras merge in the herd, so that the predators cannot single out one individual animal to predate on. Furthermore, the pattern of stripes on each animal is unique, and it is a useful tool for identifying an individual animal. This is especially true for the foals to identify their mothers and vice versa among the herd. INTERESTING FACTS
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