Kenya: Ol Pejeta Conservancy – Grevy’s Zebras

Grevy’s Zebra is the rarest of the three species of zebra (the other two are Plains and Mountain). There are less than 3000 of them left ONLY in the arid regions of northern Kenya. They are numerous in the Samburu National Park. It’s much larger than the common zebra, it has almost three times the amount of stripes, and a no-stripe white belly. These zebras almost never form large groups and males are usually solitary and aggressive weighing close to 1000 lb/500 kg. The stripes of the Grevy’s zebras are particularly interesting – narrow and many – they create several visual effects by polarizing light – insects are repelled while standing and the moving animal creates an illusion of motion in an opposite direction (wagon wheel effect)! Unlike the common Plains zebras, Grevy’s zebras can survive without water for up to five days.