Nadine a business owner, who filmed this sighting recalls, “We (had) stopped at a zebra herd with our 3-year-old daughter and noticed a female lying down, clearly in the early stages of giving birth on the S106, in Kruger! Excited to witness a live birth, we watched closely.”
What should have been a tender moment soon took a dark turn, when a zebra stallion arrived and began attacking the prostrate mother-to-be.
In the videos submitted, the stallion aggressively harasses the mare, determined to prevent her from going through with the birth.
The perturbed mother stands with her unborn foetus half out.
Unable to delay the inevitable birth, the mare once again lies down, hoping to deliver her foal. And, yet again, she attracts the unwanted and violent attention of the stallion.
As the male presses home its attack, Nature takes its course and the foal is born. However, the beleaguered female is unable to assist it, even appearing unaware of the birth.
Momentarily, the male stops his assault. But, as he turns he sees the newborn foal and moves over to investigate.
What is already a horrific scenario then gets even worse. The stallion redirects his aggression at the barely moving infant.
Unbelievably, the stallion kneels on and appears to bite the foal. Shockingly, we realise that the foal is alive as it raises its head momentarily.
All this with the mother lying either exhausted from the fowl birth or oblivious just centimeters away.
When she does realise, the attack on her foal has gone unabated for over a minute. It is impossible to tell whether it is still alive.
This doesn’t stop the mother from rising in the hopes of protecting her offspring. With afterbirth still emerging, she bravely attempts to fend off the relentless stallion.
As the video progresses, the mother does all she can to keep the stallion from the unmoving foal. But the stallion counters her every effort to kick, push, and maneuver with equal ferocity.
For the viewer, it is perhaps a mercy when the video ends. According to Smith, “The desperate mother fought back, trying to protect her baby, but despite her efforts, she couldn’t save the poor foal.”
Shocking as it is, the behaviour in the video is quite well-documented in zebras, and there are also records of it happening in domestic horses.
The working theory is that aggression by stallions towards pregnant females and their newborn offspring relates to ensuring genetic succession.
In the scenario presented in the video, it is likely that the stallion has recently taken over the mare’s herd. His priority is to further his genetic lineage by mating with his newly acquired females.
So, when a female is with a foal, it means his priority is delayed as she won’t come into oestrus while she is nursing.
Therefore, by killing the foal, he ensures that she will be a viable mate sooner, thereby enhancing his chances of genetic succession.
Zebras live in fairly complex social groups, with males servicing a harem of up to six mares. Male dominance rotates frequently as individuals age and are ousted by younger, stronger challengers.
