Females become sexually mature at the age of 3 and may reproduce throughout the rest of their life. Most males begin mating at about 5 years of age. The female zebra carries a single young, called a foal, inside her body for about a year before giving birth. It can stand within an hour after birth. In a few days, the young zebra begins eating grass.
Zebras face an uncertain future in the wild.
They must compete with ranchers and farmers for grazing land and scarce water resources. Many zebras have been killed for their meat and their hides. Only the common zebra is still numerous. Both Grevy's zebra and the mountain zebra are endangered. A fourth kind of zebra, the quagga, became extinct in the late 1800's.