Why was the Quagga not fully-striped like other Zebras?
There are different opinions about the reason or purpose of the incomplete striping in the Quagga. Usually colouration in animals is very useful to render the animal less visible and therefore it gives some protection against predators. In recent years it has been suggested that zebra stripes give good protection against the attacks of Tsetse flies and the transmission of diseases by these flies. Because the Quagga lived outside the area where Tsetse flies occur, it is argued that it could afford to lose it’s stripes. There is, however, still a strong case for the Quagga’s colouration having been useful as camouflage in it’s habitat.
