For this reason, cheetahs also usually hunt young foals. Hunting fully grown zebras is still much too dangerous for cheetahs as they would risk getting trampled by the zebras. Falling at such high speeds often paralyzes them briefly which is when the cheetahs go in for the kill. When cheetahs hunt, it usually happens at extremely high speeds and one incredibly efficient trick cheetahs use when they hunt at these speeds is to grab their target’s legs to make them fall. ![]() Instead, cheetahs rely on speed and agility when hunting. CheetahsĬheetahs are significantly smaller than lions and nowhere near as strong as leopards. Leopards are experts at stealth so when they hunt, they sneak up on their target to get as close as possible, often within just 15 feet (about 5 meters), before they strike. Instead, leopards will go after foal in most cases but occasionally also old, sick, or otherwise weak fully grown zebras. Leopards are solitary creatures that do not have the benefit of hunting in groups so hunting fully grown zebras is not really an option for them as it would simply be too dangerous. Both spotted hyenas and African wild dogs will also go after young zebras (ideally foal) when given the chance as they are much easier to overpower and usually provides an easier and safer meal for the hyenas and wild dogs. Spotted hyenas and African wild dogs.īoth Spotted hyenas and African wild dogs are significantly smaller than lions but they also hunt together in groups, allowing them to overpower large zebras. A fully grown zebra can provide enough food for a couple of lions. They do, however, most often hunt together in groups (called prides) as this increases their hunting success rate and makes hunting much safer. Lions are the largest predators in Africa and are so powerful that they can take down a zebra on their own. You will learn about how zebras defend themselves and why they can be so dangerous for predators to hunt later in this post but first, a quick look at each of the zebras’ primary predators. The reason for this is that hunting zebras that are on their own is not only much easier for the predators but also much safer since zebras can be quite fierce when it comes to defending themselves and each other. These animals utilize different hunting strategies but one thing they all have in common is that they will always attempt to go after zebras that have been separated from the rest of their group and preferably young, old, sick, or otherwise weak zebras. Less common predators of zebras include leopards, cheetahs, African wild dogs, and crocodiles. The biggest predators of zebras are lions and spotted hyenas. Zebras are rather large animals that can weigh upwards of 900 pounds (a little over 400 kg) and for that reason, their only predators are also rather large carnivores that usually hunt in groups. Grevy’s zebras and Cape mountain zebras are very rare and are only found in certain parts of Africa but plains zebras are widely distributed all over eastern and southern Africa and can be found in a range of different habitats including savanna, shrubland, and grassland. ![]() The two other types are Grevy’s zebra and the Cape mountain zebra (also called Hartmann’s mountain zebra). The plains zebra (also known as common zebra or Burchell’s zebra) is the most common species and almost always the one, you will see on your safari. These Animals are Zebras’ Primary Predators
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