Australasian Zebra Population

You’re absolutely right, the idea of Perth Zoo breeding purebred Grants zebras would be fantastic and would certainly add diversity to the regions population. I’d love to see them take on that role and bring back the prominence of Grants zebras like we saw in the 80s and 90s.


With Darling Downs Zoo the only one breeding them right now, it feels like a missed opportunity if Perth doesnt take advantage of the potential to bring in new genetics and help boost the population of purebred Grants. I understand there are challenges, but perhaps, as you mentioned, it could be a possibility down the line if the right conditions align.


Even though generic zebras may be the practical option for now, itd be great if Perth could start to transition towards breeding Grants zebras in the future. Maybe they could look into collaborations with Darling Downs Zoo or other breeders to bring fresh genetics in. It would definitely be a step forward in the regions efforts to preserve and grow the Grants population.


What are your thoughts on how Perth could go about introducing Grants zebras into their breeding program while balancing their current zebra herd?
 
Jambo said:
They could reconsider but tbh we don't have a lot of designated bachelor facilities regionally so every facility is really valuable to the overall program. The males have to be accommodated somehow and whilst most zoos these days are able to accommodate them at their birth facility this isn't always the case and it's always nice to have designated facilities where any surplus males can be offloaded to.

I'd personally love to see there be a focus back on breeding zebras at a sub species level but realistically this wouldn't be supported enough regionally.

In saying that, Perth will likely remain a bachelor facility for the reasons stated!
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It’s a real shame that the efforts of DDZ and ZooDoo in breeding hasn’t resulted in Grant’s zebra becoming widespread across the region given the former has mostly produced fillies; the latter colts.

DDZ now have a generic stallion covering their fillies, though at least this maintains their viability until a purebred colt can be sourced.
 
Jaiden said:
You’re absolutely right, the idea of Perth Zoo breeding purebred Grants zebras would be fantastic and would certainly add diversity to the regions population. I’d love to see them take on that role and bring back the prominence of Grants zebras like we saw in the 80s and 90s.


With Darling Downs Zoo the only one breeding them right now, it feels like a missed opportunity if Perth doesnt take advantage of the potential to bring in new genetics and help boost the population of purebred Grants. I understand there are challenges, but perhaps, as you mentioned, it could be a possibility down the line if the right conditions align.


Even though generic zebras may be the practical option for now, itd be great if Perth could start to transition towards breeding Grants zebras in the future. Maybe they could look into collaborations with Darling Downs Zoo or other breeders to bring fresh genetics in. It would definitely be a step forward in the regions efforts to preserve and grow the Grants population.


What are your thoughts on how Perth could go about introducing Grants zebras into their breeding program while balancing their current zebra herd?
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Perth doesn’t have the space to manage two zebra herds, so realistically, they’d need to wait for the geldings to die out.

The best way to found a purebred herd is source what you can when you can. Acquire a colt and then even if he initially breeds with generics, fillies can be added throughout his 20 year tenure.
 
I see your point, and that makes sense given the space limitations at Perth Zoo. I do agree that starting with a colt and gradually introducing purebred fillies over time could be a smart strategy to build a strong herd. It’s always good to have a long-term plan in mind for genetic diversity.


Thanks for the thoughtful discussion! I really appreciate hearing your insights and I’m sure Perth will find the best approach for managing their zebra population in the future.
 
Zoofan15 said:
It’s a real shame that the efforts of DDZ and ZooDoo in breeding hasn’t resulted in Grant’s zebra becoming widespread across the region given the former has mostly produced fillies; the latter colts.

DDZ now have a generic stallion covering their fillies, though at least this maintains their viability until a purebred colt can be sourced.
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It's a shame Zoodoo only had one of their fillies successfully conceive too - and the other recently passing at a fairly young age.

DDZ have bred theirs quite well; it would be nice if another regional holder came on board to help, although I do know Steve's ensured there's the space at DDZ to accommodate further breeding in the long term.
 
Jambo said:
It's a shame Zoodoo only had one of their fillies successfully conceive too - and the other recently passing at a fairly young age.

DDZ have bred theirs quite well; it would be nice if another regional holder came on board to help, although I do know Steve's ensured there's the space at DDZ to accommodate further breeding in the long term.
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It would appear the most practical step would have been for a ZooDoo colt to have gone to DDZ to cover their first generation fillies. The resulting offspring (which would have no breeding application at DDZ) could then transfer out to breeding herds across the region to remain static until their herds can receive opposite sex purebred to begin the transition to a purebred herd e.g. a filly arrives, has 4-5 foals under a generic stallion until a purebred stallion arrives.
 
Zoofan15 said:
It would appear the most practical step would have been for a ZooDoo colt to have gone to DDZ to cover their first generation fillies. The resulting offspring (which would have no breeding application at DDZ) could then transfer out to breeding herds across the region to remain static until their herds can receive opposite sex purebred to begin the transition to a purebred herd e.g. a filly arrives, has 4-5 foals under a generic stallion until a purebred stallion arrives.
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That sounds like a really good idea, and although it would've likely taken a very long time I think we would have been happy to see the results eventually with a (mostly) purebred breeding population of Grants.

A few decades ago, Werribee attempted to breed their purebred Chapmans, but soon encountered the difficulty of other zoos not being on board and them consequently having to sustain the population themselves. A huge challenge that Steve is thankfully up to.
 
Mogo Zoo Update:

As mentioned in the news thread, Poppy (2020) gave birth to a filly in February.

This is Poppy's offspring following the birth of 1.0 Waridi last January.

This birth should bring Mogo up to fourteen zebras (including three young foals).
 
Orana Update:

Orana have welcomed their first zebra foals in over 30 years!

The first foal, a male born in December, has been named 'Herbie'. The second was born late February and it's sex has yet to be confirmed.

The sire of both is Malawi (2013) who arrived from Hamilton Zoo in late 2023.

The mothers are Asale (2009) and Eve (2018), the former born at Hamilton and the latter at Auckland.

https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/557677/christchurch-wildlife-park-welcomes-birth-of-two-zebra
 
Jambo said:
Orana Update:

Orana have welcomed their first zebra foals in over 30 years!

The first foal, a male born in December, has been named 'Herbie'. The second was born late February and it's sex has yet to be confirmed.

The sire of both is Malawi (2013) who arrived from Hamilton Zoo in late 2023.

The mothers are Asale (2009) and Eve (2018), the former born at Hamilton and the latter at Auckland.

https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/557677/christchurch-wildlife-park-welcomes-birth-of-two-zebra
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It’s good to hear attempts to breed from Asale (2009) were successful given she’s a first time breeder at 15 years and how mares who go a decade or more without reproducing can often become sterile. Orana advised both mares received breeding recommendations, but Eve was obviously the stronger bet.

An interesting note regarding the stallion:

"Malawi got a little boisterous after the foals' arrival, so we needed to separate him from the mums and bubs for some peace and quiet," he said.

Plains zebra mares often produce foals at 12-13 month intervals, so factoring in the gestation, he was probably trying to mate the mares again.
 
Zoofan15 said:
It’s a real shame that the efforts of DDZ and ZooDoo in breeding hasn’t resulted in Grant’s zebra becoming widespread across the region given the former has mostly produced fillies; the latter colts.

DDZ now have a generic stallion covering their fillies, though at least this maintains their viability until a purebred colt can be sourced.
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There was a plan, when our Zebras were imported from the USA, that would have ensured continuity of Grant type animals for at least 3 generations. After that a further import would have taken place. That plan fell by the wayside when the original owner of Zoodoo transferred ownership to a family member.

We, along with the third partner, have struggled to maintain the integrity of our herd ever since. We still have our original stallion breeding with our original mares but no unrelated pure type stallion to cover their fillies.

We had hoped that the latest owner of Zoodoo would see the value of keeping this type as intact as possible and revert to the original agreement but that hope has yet to be realised.

The industry is not interested in breeding to type - in fact they have now voted for Grevy's in Australia. I won't comment on that!

The two original partners are now working on plan J or K - I've lost count.
 
Steve Robinson said:
The industry is not interested in breeding to type - in fact they have now voted for Grevy's in Australia. I won't comment on that!
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Interesting to hear Steve - I know Europe specifically have a reasonably sized breeding population of Grevy's, so it's possible this decision has been made on the basis of acquiring large imports from there.

In saying that, I'd be surprised if this doesn't eventuate further than the previous attempts to maintain purebred populations regionally; but nonetheless, it would be great if they could prove me wrong!
 
Zoofan15 said:
It’s good to hear attempts to breed from Asale (2009) were successful given she’s a first time breeder at 15 years and how mares who go a decade or more without reproducing can often become sterile. Orana advised both mares received breeding recommendations, but Eve was obviously the stronger bet.
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From what I've read up on, it's rare for mares to go sterile if they haven't breed, even at an older age. However that's not to say it isn't possible and so it's always best to breed mares at a younger age to minimise the risk of this occurring.

In DDZ's case, they'd be needing every single of their younger mares to reproduce, so waiting and risking such circumstances isn't really the best option.
 
Jambo said:
Interesting to hear Steve - I know Europe specifically have a reasonably sized breeding population of Grevy's, so it's possible this decision has been made on the basis of acquiring large imports from there.

In saying that, I'd be surprised if this doesn't eventuate further than the previous attempts to maintain purebred populations regionally; but nonetheless, it would be great if they could prove me wrong!
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Even if some of our larger zoos had an interest with importing Grevy's Zebra surely they would have the resources and the room with their open range zoos to hold two species within the country?
 
Zorro said:
Even if some of our larger zoos had an interest with importing Grevy's Zebra surely they would have the resources and the room with their open range zoos to hold two species within the country?
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There would be - I'd imagine there'd only initially be a select few zoos dedicated to breeding the species and once numbers are built up, other holders will eventually come on board.
 
Jambo said:
it's rare for mares to go sterile if they haven't breed, even at an older age.
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Correct.

The greater issue is trying to introduce a new stallion [inevitably younger] to a cohesive group of old maids.

Breeding them when younger, even to a less desired stallion, at least keeps them in practice [as it were].

Introducing a replacement stallion later on is then so much easier.
 
Jambo said:
From what I've read up on, it's rare for mares to go sterile if they haven't breed, even at an older age.
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I think the confusion regarding sterility in mares comes from this note in the Australasian Husbandry Guidelines for Plains zebra:

If you want to breed a mare that is 10 yrs old, she may be in the middle of her peak breeding condition, but if she has never bred before, you just may run the risk of her becoming barren and never being capable of breeding. I suggest breeding is started young and not left too long between conceptions otherwise you may run the risk of losing a very genetically viable mare.

If I understand correctly @Steve Robinson, the husbandry advice is not untrue; but it’s more of a behavioural issue (the mare is unused to living/breeding in a harem under a stallion) as opposed to a physiological issue (the mare is incapable of conceiving)?
 
Zoofan15 said:
I think the confusion regarding sterility in mares comes from this note in the Australasian Husbandry Guidelines for Plains zebra:

If you want to breed a mare that is 10 yrs old, she may be in the middle of her peak breeding condition, but if she has never bred before, you just may run the risk of her becoming barren and never being capable of breeding. I suggest breeding is started young and not left too long between conceptions otherwise you may run the risk of losing a very genetically viable mare.

If I understand correctly @Steve Robinson, the husbandry advice is not untrue; but it’s more of a behavioural issue (the mare is unused to living/breeding in a harem under a stallion) as opposed to a physiological issue (the mare is incapable of conceiving)?
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It can be either - or one leading to the other. You won't know for sure unless you give all avenues a try.

I have never seen any scientific evidence that Zebras, like elephants, are physically incapable of breeding beyond a certain age if left unmated while younger.
 
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