With plentiful supplies of grass in Maryland and no natural predators, the zebras should be able to survive just fine on their own for as long as they remain free. “They have a high metabolism and as long as they have enough food, that’ll serve as fuel and generate heat to keep them warm.” It’ll thicken and keep them warm,” zoologist David Rubenstein of Princeton University told Kurzius. “As with most equids, they have a winter coat. Some zebras in Africa have been known to live on the high slopes of Mount Kenya, and others have been able to migrate to warmer climates when the temperature drops. The likely answer is yes, reports Rachel Kurzius of DCist. The owner of these zebras’ former home in fact owns a 39-strong zeal, which is the name for a group of zebras.Īnother concern at the front of people's minds: what could happen if the zebras are never caught? Could they survive a North American winter? Like many other exotic animals, it turns out that the mammals were legal to own with a permit from the United States Department of Agriculture, per the Post. In the meantime, however, some have started to wonder how a private farm got zebras in the first place. (And no, that is not the start of a joke.) Washington, D.C.’s delegate to Congress even released a satirical statement denying responsibility for helping the zebras escape. People have been having fun encountering the animals, with plenty of backyard sightings posted to social media, parents taking their kids zebra hunting, and a nighttime spotting of a zebra crossing the road. In the meantime, Maryland residents have taken to social media to share their encounters with the animals on the lam, reports Dana Hedgpeth of the Washington Post. WILD MARYLAND ZEBRAS /uISFfuPOpS- Joshua DuBois September 20, 2021 So I do a U on Croom Road, pull into some guy’s driveway and…BAM. Something tells me he actually thinks he saw them. On the way home he calmly says “dad I saw the zebras” Today August (6) asks me to go fishing before sunset. Because of the animal's instinct to flee, animal control officials avoid chasing the animals and instead try to lure them into a corral with enticing snacks of grain. They haven’t had any luck, yet, however. Having evolved to escape predators such as lions on the flat savannah and grasslands of Africa, zebras can run very fast at a moment’s notice. In four decades of catching runaway animals, this would be his first experience going after the equine species.Īs it turns out, catching zebras is a pretty tricky endeavor. “When I first heard about it I was like, ‘OK, you’ve got to be kidding me, right? Zebras?’” Rodney Taylor, chief of the Prince George’s County Animal Services Division, told Levenson. It all started on August 31, when five of the striped mammals escaped from a private farm in Upper Marlboro, Maryland, reports Michael Levenson of the New York Times. Imagine looking out into your backyard and seeing zebras: It sounds like something out of a dream or a trippy song from the 1970s. But for the past month, it’s been reality for residents of suburban Maryland. The zebras first escaped on August 30 from an 80-acre farm off Duley Station Road in Upper Marlboro. Initially, officials had reported five zebras missing, when in fact only three had escaped. WTOP’s Anna Gawel contributed to this report.Editor's Note, October 15, 2021: Prince George County officials publicly announced one of the rogue zebras was found dead at a private residence on September 16 after getting caught in a small animal snare, the Washington Post reports. WTOP has reached out to the county’s Department of the Environment. NBC Washington reported that animal control officers have a set up a feeding station in a field to try to corral the animals, which are legally owned and escaped from a farm. Mother Alexis Reed Curling told NBC Washington that she had to tell the call taker that she had not been drinking nor had she taken any drugs, but there are zebras in the backyard. The Curling family called 311 and reported what they saw. Indeed on Thursday, a family saw three zebras in their Upper Marlboro backyard. “This is not to say this incident hasn’t reoccurred more recently but that no 911 calls have been received since then,” police said. 31, for a zebra running across the road in front of a vehicle along Croom Road. The dazzle (that’s what a group of zebras is sometimes called) was grazing in a field in Upper Marlboro, and according to Prince George’s County police, they’ve had reports of zebras being striped spotted before. Business & Finance Click to expand menu.Ī news helicopter flying over Prince George’s County saw an unusual sight in a Maryland field Tuesday afternoon: six zebras.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |