# Plains zebra (*Equus quagga*)

Canonical page: https://creaturedata.com/animals/plains-zebra  
Data as of: 2026-11-11

The plains zebra (Equus quagga) is a mammal in the family Equidae and the order Perissodactyla, named by Boddaert, 1785. It falls in the giant size class, with a representative adult body mass of 400 kg. A terrestrial, cathemeral herbivore, its main foods are cenchrus ciliaris, cynodon dactylon, eragrostis superba and themeda triandra. The IUCN lists it as Near Threatened, which is not a threatened category; gestation lasts 365.3 days and a litter has 1 young.

## Quick facts

| Fact | Value |
|---|---|
| Weight | 275.5 kg – 400 kg |
| Length | Not recorded |
| Lifespan | 20.7 years – 38 years |
| Diet | Herbivore |
| Longest recorded lifespan | 40 years |
| Main food | cenchrus ciliaris, cynodon dactylon, eragrostis superba, themeda triandra |
| Habitat | grassland, woodland |
| Gestation | 365 days |
| Young per litter or clutch | 1 |
| Age at maturity | 2.47 years |
| Litters or clutches a year | 0.6 – 0.62 |
| Active | Day and night (cathemeral) |
| Lifestyle | Terrestrial |
| Conservation status | Near Threatened (IUCN) |
| Countries on record | Not recorded |

## Classification

- kingdom: Animalia
- phylum: Chordata
- class: Mammalia
- order: Perissodactyla
- family: Equidae
- genus: Equus
- species: *Equus quagga* Boddaert, 1785

Synonyms: *Equus burchellii*, *Eqvus quagga*

## Common questions

### How heavy is a plains zebra?

The plains zebra has a representative adult body mass of 400 kg, placing it in the giant size class.

### What does the plains zebra eat?

It is a herbivore whose main foods are cenchrus ciliaris, cynodon dactylon, eragrostis superba and themeda triandra.

### Is the plains zebra endangered?

No. The IUCN Red List classes it as Near Threatened (NT), which is not a threatened category.

### How long does a plains zebra live?

Its lifespan is 20.65 years, and the highest value reported by our sources is 40 years.

### How long is the plains zebra's pregnancy?

Gestation lasts 365.3 days, or 1 year, and each litter has 1 young.

### What kind of animal is the plains zebra?

It is a mammal in the family Equidae, order Perissodactyla and genus Equus.

### Who named the plains zebra?

The scientific name Equus quagga is attributed to Boddaert, 1785.

### What other names does the plains zebra have?

Other English names are Quagga, Damara zebra, Common zebra, Zambezi zebra and Grant's zebra.

## Sources

- [An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles](https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3563457.v1), CC0 1.0, E096-269. Myhrvold, N.P., Baldridge, E., Chan, B., Sivam, D., Freeman, D.L. & Ernest, S.K.M. (2015) An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles. Ecology 96: 3109. https://doi.org/10.1890/15-0846R.1. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3563457.v1
- [Catalogue of Life eXtended Release](https://www.checklistbank.org/dataset/316691), CC BY 4.0, 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life (2026). Catalogue of Life eXtended Release, version 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life Foundation, Amsterdam, Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.48580/dgzlf
- [Wikimedia Commons](https://commons.wikimedia.org), per file (CC0 / public domain / CC BY green, CC BY-SA amber, anything else not displayed), 2026-11-11. Wikimedia Commons contributors. Wikimedia Commons. https://commons.wikimedia.org (each file credited to its author under its own licence).
- [EltonTraits 1.0: species-level foraging attributes of the world's birds and mammals](https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3559887.v1), CC0 1.0, 1.0. Wilman, H., Belmaker, J., Simpson, J., de la Rosa, C., Rivadeneira, M.M. & Jetz, W. (2014) EltonTraits 1.0: Species-level foraging attributes of the world's birds and mammals. Ecology 95: 2027. https://doi.org/10.1890/13-1917.1. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3559887.v1
- [Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org), CC0 1.0, 2026-11-11. Wikidata contributors. Wikidata. https://www.wikidata.org (data retrieved via the Wikidata Query Service).
- [Wikipedia (English)](https://en.wikipedia.org), CC BY-SA 4.0, 2026-11-11. Wikipedia contributors. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. https://en.wikipedia.org (text under CC BY-SA 4.0; each block names its article and revision).

Cite as: Plains zebra (Equus quagga). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/plains-zebra