Why would an adult zebra try to drown a baby zebra?

Male zebras regularly kill foals sired by other males in order to assert their claim to be the dominant male in the herd and ensure they do not become a future rival. The killing of a female’s young also frees her up to be a potential reproductive partner.

Why are zebras aggressive?

They will engage in similar aggressive behavior when another stallion attempts to take over their herd, or to display dominance in mating. If a zebra is attacked, other zebras come to its defense and form a circle around it to ward off the predator.

What animals eat baby zebras?

Challenges a Baby Zebra Will Face The most common wild predators include lions and hyenas, but zebras may also be hunted by wild dogs, cheetahs and leopards. Humans also hunt them for both their meat and their distinctive furs, and crocodiles are a threat at river crossings.

What do male zebras do to pregnant females?

There is even some evidence of dominant males aggressively mating with pregnant females in order to force them to miscarry. In this case, it’s unclear whether the young foal made it out alive. “The zebras disappeared further away behind the trees after a long chase,” recalls Tjärnén.

Why do male zebras fight?

These play-fights will help prepare these young males for the real thing when they attempt to establish harems of their own. As they will often attempt to bite each others rumps and tails, zebras will sometimes be forced to tuck their rear ends in to keep out of the way of their rival’s jaws.

How long are zebras pregnant for?

Grévy’s zebra: 13 months
Mountain zebra: 12 months
Zebra/Gestation period

Why do zebras kill each other’s babies?

And zebras aren’t the only ones who exhibit this shocking behavior. Lions, chimpanzees and occasionally bottlenose dolphins also kill their rivals’ babies in order to free up the mothers to become fertile more quickly so the new males can father their own child.

Are zebras aggressive by nature?

But aggression is not the darkest side of a zebra’s nature. If a male zebra obtains a pregnant female for his harem, he will repeatedly rape the female until she aborts the pregnancy. The rape triggers the release of hormones which will cause her body to resorb the fetus or miscarry.

Do zebras mate with pregnant females to force them to miscarry?

There is even some evidence of dominant males aggressively mating with pregnant females in order to force them to miscarry. In this case, it’s unclear whether the young foal made it out alive. “The zebras disappeared further away behind the trees after a long chase,” recalls Tjärnén.

Did a zebra attempt to drown a foal sired by a rival?

In the shocking footage below, a male zebra attempts to drown a foal sired by a rival male at a lake in Etosha National Park, Namibia.