Introduced/invasive species can cause havoc, of course. But it seems like these zebras have kept in balance pretty well. It might be that they're filling a niche left by an insufficient number of wild horses and antelope.
Saturday, October 5, 2024
Wild zebras couldn't drag me away
It's a story I've only heard about in the past couple of years, and it's delightfully nutty. William Randolph Hearst imported a herd of zebras for his private zoo, because that's the kind of millionaire tycoon he was. Eventually he groaned "Rosebud!" for the last time and most of his animals went to legitimate zoos. But the zebras stayed. Eventually they got out and went wild. Now Southern California has wild zebras as part of its ecosystem, at least in a small stretch.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
2 comments:
A herd of wild zebras on the Pacific coast is news to me. What a wonderful thing it would be to see them and maybe some elephant seals as well.
There are wild hippos in Colombia - the original four animals were owned by Pablo Escobar and kept in his private zoo. When he died in 1993 nobody felt like making the effort to catch them and now they number in the hundreds. Apparently, they are considered invasive but still nobody knows how to get rid of them
Another group of non-native animals are the wallabies that live not far from Paris. I guess it was another escape from a zoo or maybe a circus (though I haven't heard of them as a circus act).
North America was once home to many species during the Ice Age, it appears the zebras as well as the wild mustangs and burros are refilling those once abandoned niches. Maybe the antelope will return too.
I was just reading about the Piedras Blancas elephant seals. They really live up to their name. Not only does their snout somewhat resemble a proboscis, but males can reach 14-16 feet. I had no idea!
Interesting story about Escobar and his hippos. Not too surprising that he was able to indulge his whims on a large scale like that. Wild hippos belong in Africa but I guess in this case that's easier said than done. Maybe they'll eventually just be thought of as part of the ecosystem. I don't know.
The wallabies in Paris are another new one on me. The short article I read traces them to the Sauvage Zoological Park. Apparently when Parisians first saw "watch for kangaroos" signs around there they thought it was a joke.
Pronghorn are the last antelopes living in North America. There certainly aren't as many as there used to be. The continent has a very rich history of animal life. Its future is unknown.
Post a Comment