January 31 - International Zebra Day

Happy International Zebra Day! On January 31st, earn your stripes by by sharing some fun facts about zebras with your friends and family. 

At Disney's Animal Kingdom, you can spot Grevy’s zebra on Gorilla Falls Exploration Trail. You can identify this endangered species by its wide, round ears and the patch of white on its snout before the stripes begin. 

Aboard a Kilimanjaro Safaris vehicle, you may see Grant’s zebra. Their ears are more pointed and thinner, and the stripes continue around their bellies. 

At Disney's Animal Kingdom Lodge, you can observe Hartmann’s zebra. Their bellies are white like Grevy’s zebra, but you can identify them by their thin, pointed ears. 

A zebra’s stripe patterns are unique to each individual, just like a human fingerprint. 

Animal experts believe the disorienting pattern of the stripes deter biting flies from zeroing in on zebras. 

Flies navigate by perceiving the light reflecting off of surfaces, and they prefer to land on solid dark surfaces. They will typically avoid zebras altogether. 

Even at birth, a foal’s legs are already almost as long as those of an adult. Within twenty minutes of birth, the zebra is on the run and uses this amazing ability as its primary method to evade predators. 

The hind legs of zebra can deliver powerful kicks to break the jaw of a predator, like a lion, and they can even run at top speeds of almost forty miles per hour! 

Unfortunately, habitat loss and competition with livestock threaten plains zebras. 

Especially severe in the northern half of their range, over-hunting poses a serious danger to zebra populations. They are hunted for their meat and their distinctive skins. 

Corridors link protected areas and allow wildlife to follow rains or migrate to their feeding grounds. 

Fortunately for these striped equines, the African Wildlife Foundation (AWF) works with governments and communities to designate wildlife corridors — large swaths of land that zebras can use to from one park, or country, to another.  

#InternationalZebraDay 

@WaltDisneyWorld 

@DisneysAnimalKingdomPark 

@AfricanWildlifeFoundation

@natgeo 

@FruitStripeOfficial 

@nichecinema