A thought-provoking photo of Grevy's zebra

(writing in progress)

I stumbled on the following: https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/236x/74/2d/3f/742d3f2c2d850b128cb07c133291660c.jpg.

This one of those pictures that encapsulate so many ideas that I hardly know where to begin.

Note that one of the ear pinnae is turned forward, the other backward.

The posterior surface of the near pinna is camouflage-marked in an intricate way. This recalls the puzzle I posed in my Post https://www.inaturalist.org/journal/milewski/60047-the-mystery-of-megafaunal-microcamouflage#.

Camouflage of the ear pinnae cannot be taken for granted in zebras. See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maneless_zebra.
https://inaturalist.ca/observations/86287378
https://inaturalist.ca/observations/69760188
https://inaturalist.ca/observations/72485227

This specimen has a well-developed mane, another feature that varies greatly among zebras.

Furthermore, the function of manes in equids and other ungulates remains to be explained in the first place.

The dark mid-dorsal stripe, found in several spp. of Equus, has never been explained. In E. grevyi, one of its functions is obviously to offset the conspicuous patch of pale on the rump. But why does this species have a conspicuous rump in the first place, unlike other species of Equus?

So, this photo is not only taken full of design features, and taken from a refreshing perspective. It is full of biological puzzles for naturalists to ponder.

(writing in progress)

Posted on July 13, 2022 08:01 AM by milewski