The Vergelegen Wine Estate in Somerset West, renowned for its environmental programmes, is celebrating the birth of a “Rau” quagga, a rare zebra sub-species.
The arrival of the healthy youngster is a milestone in an ambitious project, initiated by a dedicated group of conservationists in 1987, to breed an animal resembling the quagga as closely as possible. This animal was hunted to extinction in the second half of the 19th century, and the last known mare died in Amsterdam Zoo in 1883.
The young Vergelegen foal was born, after a 12-month gestation period, on 14 December 2022. It was left undisturbed to bond with the seven other quagga and its sex had not yet been determined.
“This youngster appears very relaxed and has been accepted as one of the herd,” said Eben Olderwagen, environmental project manager at Vergelegen. “It has grown about 15 cm taller in a month and has been spotted nibbling lucerne in addition to suckling its mother.”
Quagga were shorter and stockier than southern-plains zebras, with a pale brown hide and black markings, unlike the white hide and black markings of other plains zebras. Quagga usually have stripes on the head, neck and front portion of their bodies only.
The quagga at Vergelegen, introduced from Pampoenvlei in the Atlantis and Darling area last May, are located in a 180 ha reserve with lush natural grazing, a mix of renosterbos, Boland granite fynbos and various grasses.
Olderwagen said management hopes the estate’s founder herd will continue to breed and, after about two years, select quagga will be exchanged with others in the programme. This will prevent in-breeding and reinforce the quest to breed quagga as near as possible to the original species.
Visitors have the opportunity to spot the quagga by booking a place on the estate’s popular guided game drives. These take visitors through the nature reserve, with possible sightings of the estate’s Nguni cattle, bontebok, quagga and five eland.
Vergelegen is situated in one of the richest floral regions of the world and in 2018 completed a 14-year, privately funded alien vegetation clearing programme. Some 2 200 ha were cleared, of which 1 900 ha were declared a nature reserve with the same status as the Kruger National Park.
Management planned to continue introducing historically naturally occurring species at Vergelegen, Olderwagen added.
A 90-minute environmental tour is held daily, weather permitting, at R350 per person, departing from the tasting room at 10:00. Book by calling 021 847 2122.
