Page 18 - The Villager April 2021

the year of the Zebra

by JameS ClarKe, PhotograPhy by mary broaDley

ne of the most notable things favoured by wildebeest. was around to count. Under normal
we found in rain-soaked their association is also said to have a circumstances the hide can take three
OKruger Park last month was the survival purpose because one of them, or four times that number. twice, on
high number of zebras. oh yes, and of and I am not sure which, is said to be separate days, we had the entire hide to
course how green it was. I cannot recall more alert than the other and likely to ourselves.
seeing so much vigorous growth and so spot a predator in time. Certainly you but it was the sight of so many zebras
much water even after the millennium will never catch zebra, all heads down at that enthralled us.
Flood. the same time, grazing. there’ll always whenever we saw zebra, mostly in
the grass was as high as an elephant’s be some on the lookout. small herds and at the roadside, we
eye and 2021 is surely going to be noted our observations were, of course, were able to get quite close. they were
in the park as the year of the zebras. I highly subjective for we only had access unfazed and we were able to study them
have never seen so many. to the southwestern corner between the and wonder anew what their bizarre
one tends to take the burchell’s Phabeni gate and Skukuza. all the sand stripes were all about.
zebra, the plains zebra, for granted. It roads were closed. Nobody really knows. each animal has
is a species instantly recognised and we’d visited the park three months a different pattern – a bit like human
associated with africa all over the world. earlier to report on the effects of the fingerprints. Science has established
the zebra’s favourite grazing collapse in tourism and the closure of that zebras are, basically, white animals
companions, the blue wildebeest, camps. Panic Dam near Skukuza - the with black stripes and not the other way
appeared to be totally outnumbered park’s premier hide - was padlocked. we around. and they can raise the hairs
this season, maybe by as much as 10 feared it would still be closed this time along the black stripes but not the white
to one. the two tend to graze together but, to our joy, the gate was unlocked. hairs in between.
because zebra prefer taller grasses a notice announced that only 10 people but why would evolution have left
and this opens up the shorter stuff were allowed at a time, though nobody them so vividly striped when all other

16 • Issue 4 2021 • The Villager