I was on another "career related" website, ie: actually working, and mentioned that I had just returned from a safari in Africa.

I got an e-mail from a colleague who offered to sell me a zebra skin rug his grandfather gave him for $300. Naturally, I couldn't let something like this fall into the hands of someone who would not appreciate it, so I bought it.

The hide is beautiful, but a little chewed on by "something", and sewed to a black felt backing. There are no ghost stripes. The "armpits" are worn down to brown leather like a chamois cloth, something I didn't notice on my zebra, but I may see when it comes back I guess.

Anyway, he told me that his grandfather had taken it in Kenya in the 1930's.

Can anyone tell me how to tell me how to tell the difference between the different species, including mine?

Thanks!

N'gagi,

This is not authorative, and serves only as a series of quick pointers to distinguish between the Namibian Hartmann's and the Burchell's:

Hartmann's:
Stripes typically run right down to the hocks
No shadow stripe - pitch black stripes on clean white skin
Grid pattern on rump
Reddish-brown tinge around muzzle / mouth.

Burchell's:
Stripes fade away down legs, and skin is white above hocks
Distinct shadow stripe
White around muzzle / mouth
Grid pattern on rump absent or indistinct.

Hope this helps

I believe that Grant's zebra which is a subspecies of Burchell's has few to no shadow stripes.

Mark,



If it is a Grevy's zebra skin then you should buy it (can't hunt Grevy's anymore).





Send it to a taxidermist and have him trim the felt, put a new backing on and border it in leather.



Regards,



Terry



P.S.



Basically there are three kinds of Zebra



1. Plains Zebra (Burchell's, Grant's, Boehm's, Selous' and Chapman's);



2. Mountain Zebra (Cape and Hartmann's); and



3. Grevy's Zebra. The Grevy's is now only found in Kenya (possibly also in Somali and Ethiopia). It is the largest wild equid with a distinctive stripe pattern, large head and big rounded ears.



P.S.S.

The "worn" armpits are normal (the thin skin in that area tans up like that).

Burchell's


Burchell's


Selous'(no shadow stripes -taken in the Selous in Tanzania)


Close up of leather trim.

Kind of a related question: does the mane on a Zebra rug, any sub-species, ever stand straight back up after being flattened?

Yours is definately a Burchels, post a pic of the skin you bought.

Terry

BTW those are truly beautiful skins you have ....

IMHO the Zebra skin rug is the best of all the mammels for floor or wall display

This is bit of additional information pertaining to Zebra, there is always a small variation on the theme but essentially this information is quite relavent today ..

Peter



STRIPES & SHADOWS

Three Species:

There are three true species of zebra: the well-known and common Burchell's Zebra Equus burchelli, the Mountain Zebra Equus zebra, and the Grevy's Zebra Equus greyvi of East Africa; all three species are further divided into regional sub-species. The extinct Quagga is considered to have been a sub-species of the Burchell's Zebra.

Need Protection in Reserves:

The Burchell's and Mountain Zebras have suffered major decreases in their range in southern Africa in recent times; both were slaughtered in large numbers by the white colonists. Indeed, this massacre led to the complete extinction of the Quagga.

Today, the two sub-species of Mountain Zebra - Cape and Hartmann's - survive in isolated populations in the Western Cape and Namibia respectively. Populations of both appear to be adequately protected within national parks and on private land.

In southern Africa, Burchell's Zebra still occur in large numbers in reserves such as Kruger, Sabi-Sand, Umfolozi, Hwange and Pilanesberg. Really large herds are, however, only to be found in northern Namibia (Etosha) and northern Botswana (Savuti/Nxai Pan).

Spectacular congregations may still be seen in these areas of vast open plains. Burchell's Zebra is also abundant in East Africa, where up to 500 000 occur in the Serengeti-Mara ecosystem - there are smaller populations in most other protected areas.

The East African zebras lack the pale brown 'shadow' stripes and appear to be more boldly patterned, in fact these are the type found in Zambia

Here are a couple of pics of my Hartmann's mountain zebra.



The rump pattern is quite distinct as compared with the Burchell's.



You can't tell it from a flatskin rug, or even from most photographs I've seen, but unlike other zebras, the Hartmann's also has a dewlap on its neck.