Stars of Stripes

 

Zebras play-fight in Kruger National Park. I have never seen a zebra rear up on its hind legs. The zebras chased each other around the meadow before squaring off in a wrestling match. But they were clearly playing. The young animals were burning off some energy before oppressive heat of the day set in over Crocodile Bridge. Zebras are some of my favorite animals. Enjoy this gallery of these stars of stripes!

🦓  🦓  🦓  🦓

Burchell's zebras rest with their heads on each other's backs in Kruger. Zebras are rarely relaxed enough to nap, so I was fortunate to see this behavior.  

Grevy's zebras in Kenya have narrow stripes that seem to create an optical illusion. With long ears that help shed heat and long legs, these are desert specialists. There are as many as 10 subspecies of zebra in Africa.

I love the pattern on these Grevy's zebras. Amazing.

A half-dozen zebra stallions chased each other around the savanna before the oppressive heat of the day forced them to seek shade. They look like carousel horses!

A feisty colt threatens to bite his dad while playing. Baby zebras learn to give as good as they get from the older members of the herd. But the stallion was just playing and will defend the baby zebra with his life. Like many zebras in Kruger, this colt has a lot of muddy black around its face breaking up the clean pattern of black and white for which most zebras are known.

A beautiful band stallion poses in the evening light. You can see where the zebra had a close encounter with the raking claws of a lion. His facial stripes healed slightly askew. The light also captured his chin whiskers.

I love the contrasting patterns of zebras and the symmetry here.

I had just driven on this road minutes earlier and was skeptical that some mishap had befallen this juvenile zebra in the short time I had been away. But she was so deeply asleep that I began to worry. But she woke with a start, spooking the herd. She must have fallen asleep while giving herself a dust bath on the road. They quickly retreated to the shade. More often, zebras will sleep with their heads resting on each other's backs. When there are lions about, it pays to stay on your feet.

I was lucky to spend a lot of time photographing zebras on this trip. They're often very skittish and shy away from any human attention. Many times I would reach for my camera only to see the butt-end of a zebra heading into the bushes. Love the war paint! So beautiful.

Perseverance paid off with a few close encounters like this group shot.

A frightened zebra bolts out of the forest. I never saw what spooked the zebra and sent it thundering past me.

A baby zebra is so dirty from rolling around in the mud that you can't see her stripes!

Grant's zebras graze on Kenya's Maasai Mara. These are the smallest of the plains zebras, but you wouldn't know it. They look as big as any others to me.

Zebras thunder across a flooded meadow at Kenya's Lake Nakuru. I can't tell if the zebra in the foreground is sick, as indicated by its flattened mane, or if it's just soaking wet after rolling in the marsh.

A baby zebra enjoys playing in the mud. Some things are universal.

Zebras play in the wildflowers. Summer is time of plenty for them.