South Africans pronounce it zeb-ra, with a short "e." Mountain Zebras are characterized by a white belly and fully striped legs as seen here. They are classified as "vulnerable" by IUCN. There are three species of zebra, all in Africa, Burchell's, Grevy's, and Mountain Zebras. The Mountain Zebra is said to be more closely related to true horses than it is to the other zebras. Since horses have no stripes, the zebra-stripe pattern has evolved independently in the two groups. This is nicely described by Stephen J. Gould in his famous essay, "What, if anything, is a Zebra?" reprinted in the book "Hen's Teeth and Horse's Toes." More recent research has found that asses (donkeys) are embedded within the Zebra clade so Gould's point stands. Mountain Zebras have two subspecies. The nominate race is called "Cape Mountain Zebra" and averages smaller than this one which is Hartmann's Mountain Zebra.
