Zebras it is. They are beautiful and exotic. Zebras are not cryptid creatures. But when you get zebras on the brain you must let them play. They are just so cool. And my last post was Stonehenge.
https://www.smokehoax.com/2023/11/one-secret-of-stonehenge-easily-debunked/
But they are part of a movie hoax. Movies paint horses to look like zebras but they are not!!
As a horse lover one of my peeves is Zebras are not horses!!
They are more like donkeys!!
Just look at them!
Painted Horses have been used from The Greatest Showman to Tanya Roberts in Sheena. Look at the white tail and little ears!!
Tv episodes and advertising do this to because it is safer and quicker to paint a white horse. Why? To promote a myth that they are just like riding horses. Only more exotic. They are not!!
They are unridable. Sometimes you see a person riding a zebra. But these are individual zebras, and the owners already have experience with equines. As an equine species, only horses are truly ridable after centuries of living with humans. Even donkeys and mules have their times of non-cooperation.
Zebras did not evolve to be safe and domesticated. They live on constant red alert. Lions, leopards, wild dogs, and crocodiles are a serious daily threat to their lives. In a world of apex predators, curiosity or calmness are not survival traits. It is flight or fight. They will fight if need be. And it often is.
Caught by a lion pride or wild dog pack, a single zebra cannot hope to win. But they do not go down easily. Not without a fight. Most lion injuries come from a zebra kick. Younger stallions are guards and soldiers
All the wild donkeys, from the kiang to the onager, have proven themselves unable to be domesticated. You never see native people of Africa riding zebras because they know how unrideable these creatures really are.
They are not touchable as a species. Even a friendly pat could trigger an attack. If you get on them, they will twist and turn to unseat you, they will kick you while you are airborne and stomp you when you land on the ground. They also bite.
Zebras are not made for riding. They are smaller than a horse, and their backs are not built to carry weight. Their backbones are flexible to do sharp turns and zigzags to escape their enemies.
They stand out for their distinctive striped coloring. One theory is predators rarely see color. Running as a herd, the zebras merge into a dizzying blur of stripes.
This was copied for a time during WW1. Called dazzle camouflage, ships were painted with stripes and colors making their outlines and headings impossible to spot from long distance. The development of radar in airplanes and submarines closed that phase, but camouflage is still used today.
Recent theory states the stripes protect the zebra from the bite of the deadly tsetse fly which causes malaria. This theory is being studied. But it does beg the question, if it is so effective why are other African creatures not striped as well??
The talented Aaron Blaise created the zebra lion
Can you paint your white horse or donkey? Yes! Of course you can! For fun, for costume class in shows, for Halloween.
Two striking examples of painted donkeys.
First story is in Tijuana where all the donkeys in harness are painted in zebra stripes. They pull little carts to give tourists a trip around Tijuana. Gray or white donkeys did not show up as well in postcards and photos. It is now accepted as a quirky colorful tradition unique to the city.
Crossing now to the besieged land of Gaza. Caught between Israel and Iran, Gaza has been under attack for years. A zoo is struggling to survive for the sake of the children. They have no money to buy new exhibits. They display wildlife such as a lion, camel, ostriches, various monkeys and birds, and a zebra.
So, when their zebra died, they painted stripes on a pair of donkeys and replaced it. This really did not fool anyone, but it had an asset no one considered. The donkeys are gentle and quite friendly. They have no problems with accepting treats and letting kids come in to play with them and ride on their backs. The Gaza children love their fake zebras.
Speaking of kids, a children’s movie came out in 2005. “Racing Stripes.”
A zebra is adopted by a farming family and ends up racing in a champion race in Kentucky because there are no rules forbidding zebras. I give them credit for using real zebras, but the idea of a zebra against racehorses is …I rest my case.
I watched Racing Stripes for this post and liked it more than I thought I would. Especially this scene.
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https://interestingengineering.com/lists/how-the-absurd-dazzle-camouflage-strategy-ended-wwi-carnage
The art of Aaron Blaise on Deviant Art
https://www.deviantart.com/ablaise/gallery?page=4
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2009/nov/04/gaza-zoology
https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/sdut-us-odd-gaza-zebras-100809-2009oct08-story.html