Why stripes on zebra

I love how it shows all the interesting things about zebras. It was really nice getting the opportunity to get on Wonderopolis and see all this exciting stuff.

Maybe your next wonder should be on "Why don't penguins swim" or something amazing!!!! Ali Feb 11, Zebras are my favorite animal!!! I'm glad you wrote about them! My favorite part of them is their stripes so I'm glad you wrote about that! Wonderopolis Feb 11, Wonder Friend N Feb 7, I love zebras!!

Thanks so much! Wonderopolis Feb 7, Cassandra Feb 6, Wonderopolis Feb 6, We're oh-so-glad you learned something new today, Cassandra! Kelsey Feb 6, Ashley ortega Feb 6, Briahna Feb 6, Hi, I am Briahna and I am in Mrs. Hess' class, here are my wonders: Are zebras born with stripes, or do they grow and then the stripes start appearing as the get older?

What other animals are color blind? Are zebras color blind? How many zebras are born each year? Is there a certain time during the year when most zebras are born, or are they just born all the time throught the year? What is the lifespand of a zebra? Cool I did not know all that stuff about zebras it was so cool. Wonderopolis Feb 5, Wonderopolis Feb 4, Chevalier's Class Feb 4, Dear Wonderopolis, We learned that zebras move in packs so that they look like one big animal.

We also learned that they are black with white stripes. Why are zebras called black and white horses? Why do animals like lions and zebras only see in black and white? Is the lion the only animal that hunts zebras? Do zebras have teeth? Why can't the lion pick out the black and white stripes? How fast does a zebra go? Are zebras related to any prehistoric animal?

We think tomorrow's wonder will be about Greek mythology. Wonderopolis never gives you the answer for each wonder. Fireheart Feb 2, Hey guys! How cool! That is funny because we are learning about that in school right now! Thanks again, Fireheart Wonderopolis Feb 3, Hey Wonderopolis! I just was wondering How is it that the scientists can tell is a lion is colorblind, and if it is, wouldn't the zebra still stand out? Thanks, Fireheart Wonderopolis Feb 2, I love zebras but I thought they were going to be black an white but after seeing the video and the facts I learned that zebras are white and black and I wonder if tomorrow's wonder will be about x-rays.

Would you make tomarrows wonder about unicorns? Wonderopolis Nov 7, Joseph Feb 1, Zebras are fascinating creatures at first I thought the stripes was for people to not think that it is a horse. Then my question is that what animal do the herds form when they run together? Did wonderoplis know that there was a zebra that is now extinct call a quagga zebra. I learned a lot about zebras today and I hope to learn more soon about animals. Wonderopolis Feb 1, Lions are color blind.

They use the stripes for camouflage and confusing their opponents. I like this info of the zebra I learned some stuff I didn't know about the zebra before as in how the animal hides in the brush and how the lion is color blind so it can't see the zebra so easy.

It's so much fun when we can learn something together, Wonder Friend student! Why are zebras black with white stripes? I looked and they have white with black stripes. Look for yourself and see if they are black with white or white with black stripes. LILD Feb 1, I learnd that a zebra has cool types of way to hide from predators! Can zebras see in black and white but I did learn that they can camouflage so that's cool but next time can you try harder to find out why from 12jk. Zebras have stripes because of their genes, long ago there where two types of zebras a white zebra and a black zebra they soon combined both of there genes to make a stripped zebra.

Feb 1, The PinkPanthers is my class. I really liked the video I can't believe how close he must have got to the zebras I could hear some wildlife in the background. I think your website is awesome! My guess for tomorrow is roman numerals. Can't wait to find out! Mikayla T Feb 1, Wonderopolis, Today's wonder was one of my favorite wonders!

I really like animals. Why do zebras have mohawks? Why don't they just have manes like horses? Today's clue for tomorrow really stumped me, but I think tomorrow's wonder is going to be about Roman numerals! Mikayla T Fouf Feb 1, Chrissy Feb 1, Thanks so much, Chrissy! We're glad to hear it! Johnson's third and fourt How do scientists know that zebras are black with white stripes? Always wondering Is it roman numerals? Also we would love to learn if a rainbow could ever be shaped in a full circle.

If there was not any ground, would it finish off the shape of a circle? J's third and fourth grad Although we didn't love the video because there weren't any words or telling us information, we did enjoy reading about how zebras use stripes as camouflage from their predators.

We did like the pictures too. We didn't know that lions were colorblind. Thank you for sharing this wonder with us!! Can't wait to see what's coming up next J's third and fourth graders.

I'm in Mrs. She enjoys watching wonderopolis because she learns new things. I enjoy it to. Andrea Feb 1, Well thank you so much, Wonder Friend Andrea! We are glad you're here today! Morgan Feb 1, We are working on questioning in class and I was wondering where you got your information? Arianna Feb 1, Thank you for the information about the zebra. The part of the zebra stripes is very interesting. You've got it, Arianna! Great work!

Zebras stripes are really brown not black they may seem black but they're not. Danny Feb 1, This really suprised me I really didn't know that they can do that, and i learned something new today!

Thanks for sharing what you learned today, Danny! Nice work! PinkPanthers Feb 1, Hi Wonderopolis, We didn't know that lions were colorblind!

We also didn't know that each zebra's stripes are different. It's like our fingerprints. It was neat to try and visualize a zebra being black with white stripes, instead of the other way around. We were wondering how much a zebra eats each day? We think tomorrow's wonder will be about Roman Numerals, a ten letter word or the alphabet - starting at x.

Berkleigh Feb 1, I really liked today's wonder! Zebras are one of my favorite animals. I have a Schleich figurine of a zebra. I thought it was so interesting to hear that zebras are not a white animal with black stripes, they are a black animal with white stripes, and that no two zebras's stripes are alike. Thank you for today's wonder! Lil' Madi and Big Madi Feb 1, We learned everything about zebras and they use camouflage. Goneau's Class Feb 1, Goneau's second grade class was wondering If you had a zebra costume on, would they think you were one of the zebras?

How smart is a zebra? How tall are zebras? How old can zebras get? How fast can they run? How many babies can zebras have at one time? How do zebra babies drink? Sanaa and Kassidy Feb 1, Some people think that zebras aren't real. We think zebras are real. Atkinson's Class Feb 1, We learned some new things today. Even our teacher learned something new about zebras. We began to wonder if other big cats are color blind like lions. We wondered if zebras and donkeys are connected, like cousins.

Predictions for tomorrow's wonder: X-rays, words that start with x, going from x to a, New Year's Eve, something to do with math, algebra. Tommy Feb 1, I like the stripes on the zebra, I think it's interesting because other animals can't see them and it protects the zebra. I'm glad I can see the stripes. K's class Feb 1, Is tomorrow's wonder of the day about roman numerals?

K's Class! We LOVE that idea! Hess' Class Feb 1, Thoughts: It's interesting to think that zebras use their stripes to escape their predators. Do zebras have mohawks? We were very surprised by today's question. None of us thought it would be about zebras. How were zebras named? Have zebras always had their stripes? How do you tell a boy zebra from a girl? What is the life span of a zebra? Predictions: How do x-rays work? How did the alphabet start? What are Roman Numerals? When will the XBox come out?

Who invented the xylophone sp? Are going to the SuperBowl? Why is an x-ray called an x-ray? Kate Feb 1, Zebras have really cool stripes. Are they black with white stripes or white with black stripes???

Plunkert's Class Feb 1, Good Morning, Wonderopolis! Today's Wonder of the Day was perfect for us! Which do you think is the most likely theory? Or perhaps you have a theory of your own to share? Please log in again. The login page will open in a new tab. After logging in you can close it and return to this page. Why Do Zebras Have Stripes? Zebra pattern close up. The mountain zebra stripes.

A living quagga, bred by the Quagga Project. Zebra strips as an optical illusion? One last very alternative theory Still with us and would like to hear one last theory as to how the zebra got its stripes? Discover more of our wildlife posts…. Close dialog. Session expired Please log in again. Scientists have put forward at least 18 reasons why, from camouflage or warning colours , to more creative explanations like unique markers that help to identify individuals like a human fingerprint.

But, for a long time new theories were introduced without rigorous tests. Zebras, together with horses and asses, are members of the Equus genus. The three living species of zebras that roam eastern and southern Africa with their coat of dark hair broken by stripes of white, unpigmented hair, are the only striped equids.

Striping patterns and intensity vary across species as well as location. These striping differences, coupled with the challenges that zebras face in their environment, have guided our understanding of how the stripes might work. While scientists still debate the exact origins and functions of zebra stripes, their recent efforts have focused more closely on three possibilities; protection from biting flies, thermoregulation and protection from predators.

Flies are a common menace to animals in Africa, leading to theories that zebra's stripes might be a defence mechanism against the insects Credit: Alamy. Flies that bite and suck blood are a common menace to animals in Africa. Horseflies and tsetse flies also transmit diseases like sleeping sickness, African horse sickness, and the potentially fatal equine influenza. The thin hair of a zebra would pose little barrier to biting flies.

For almost a century now, anecdotal evidence and experiments with inanimate models have repeatedly shown that flies tend to not land on striped surfaces. Large-scale evidence came in a study by Caro and his colleagues. They collected weather, lion presence and zebra herd size data, and compared these factors to the stripes of zebras living in the area.

Striping was more pronounced in environments that favour horseflies , according to Caro. The study is published in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B. Log In. Contact us Sign up for newsletters. Log In Register now My account. August 19, am Updated August 24, pm.