Native to the savannah lands of East and Southern Africa, zebras are striking and remarkable creatures. They are closely related to the horse, but have never been domesticated. And while their distinctive black and white markings make them easy to spot, the stripes of an entire herd create an optical effect that confuses their predators and protects them from attack. Individual animals look very much alike, yet each is distinguished by the particular pattern of its hide, between the shoulder and the hind quarters. Zebra society is organised into family clans, but the young males live in separate groups. The last word goes to the celebrated French Enlightenment naturalist, the Comte de Buffon: ‘the zebra is perhaps the best formed of any quadruped, and the most elegantly dressed.’ Design by Robert Dallet
