Residents of Moa village in Lamu county witnessed a home-bred zebra give birth to a Zonkey which is half zebra and half donkey.
The Zebra fled into the compound of area chief Abdi Bocha as it escaped from a group of lions on a lunch-hunting spree last year.
“The zebra which came in just about a year and two months ago was fleeing from danger and it was interesting to watch how easily it interacted with the rest of the animals on my farm,” Bocha said.
Since then, the zebra has been living at the homestead together with donkeys and other domestic animals.
Bocha confirmed the birth of the young one adding that the zebra had mated with one of his donkeys resulting in the rare zonkey.
He said they have contacted the animal conservancy in their area and also the Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS )office in Lamu who have promised to ensure the mother zebra and her baby are well taken care of.
The news was also confirmed by the Lamu County KWS Senior Warden Mathias Mwavita who said they had given the family permission to continue taking care of the zebra and its young one.
He said the service was encouraging locals to take in and care for stray but harmless wild animals including zebras, antelopes and the like.
“These cases are not unique, we have had similar cases in areas like Maralal. The habitats here are inadequate and such zebras and others are in danger of being eaten and that’s why they flee into human residences for safety,” Mwavita said.
Edited by Kiilu Damaris
