Donkey is a mammal, odd-toed ungulates.
In many countries, even now, a donkey, or a domestic donkey, lives next to people. Animal wild donkey participated in the formation of this economic subspecies.
Domestic donkeys have been proven to predate domesticated horses and have long been practically the main mode of transportation.
Donkey: characteristics, origin
As is the case with many other animals, such as horses, must be distinguished between wild and feral donkeys. The wild donkey has its own characteristics. But we will talk about them a little later.
Donkeys can be found in a wide variety of colors: gray, black, brown, occasionally white. The color of the abdomen, the front of the muzzle and the area around the eyes is usually light. The mane and tail are stiff. At the end of the tail is a brush. The ears are clearly longer than those of a horse.
The height of donkeys varies between 90-160 cm. Sexual maturity is reached at about 2.5 years.
Due to the fact that their hooves do not tolerate the European humid climate (deepholes and cracks in which abscesses appear), caring for them is extremely important.
These animals come from countries with arid climatic conditions.
Wild donkey: name, description, habitats
Wild donkey (Equus asinus) in the long past, most likely, was widespread in the North African deserts. As a species, it, unfortunately, is practically not studied.
The ancestor of the domestic donkey (North Africa) has the appearance of a typical long-eared animal, much smaller than a horse (up to 1.4 m high), thin-legged, with a massive head and a short mane.
Once upon a time, various subspecies of this ungulate lived in North Africa and parts of Asia. As a result of domestication, they almost all disappeared in the ancient Roman era.
Today they have survived only in the hills off the Egyptian coast of the Red Sea, in Ethiopia, Somalia, Sudan and Eritrea. A small population was able to take root in the Israeli reserve.
In Somalia, the wild ass may have completely disappeared as a result of the civil war. In Ethiopia and Sudan, it is likely that the same fate awaits him too. Only Eritrea has a good population of these animals - about 400 individuals.
The Feral Donkeys Spread
The feral (once domesticated) donkeys, in comparison with the original wild ones, exist in many countries of the world. There are also in countries with populations of wild donkeys, which causes serious concern for zoologists. They believe that this situation can lead to mixing of both groups, and this will lead to the destruction of the genetic purity of the wild donkey.
Quite a lotferal animals live in the steppes of Australia (1.5 million). There are about 6,000 protected donkeys (burros) in the southwestern United States.
One of the few European populations of such donkeys is also found on about. Capras. They are larger than other donkeys. Their unusualness also lies in the fact that zebra-shaped stripes are observed on the legs.
Perhaps the wild donkey is not originally wild at all. Most of the animals that people have seen in nature in recent years are practically feral domestic animals. The wild donkey is rather little studied. All that is known about him is that he lives mainly in the desert and semi-desert. Feeds mostly on vegetation.
Lifestyle
Like zebras, donkeys are kept in family herds (10 mares and young ones) led by a stallion. They roam widely and are very cautious. In nature, both smooth-haired and long-haired and curly can be found.
They mate mainly in spring, less often in early summer. After about 1 year (13-14 months), one or two foals are born and nursed until 6 months of age.
The donkey is very attached to her cubs. The colt reaches independence by almost two years.
Difference from a horse, features
What is the difference between a donkey and a horse? The fact that he has hooves adapted to walking on uneven rocky surfaces. But they allow these animals only to move safely, but not to jump. True, if necessary, donkeycapable of speeds up to 70 kilometers per hour.
In addition to noticeable external differences from horses, there are some features that are not noticeable at first glance. One of them is a different number of vertebrae. Donkeys also have 31 pairs of chromosomes, while horses have 32.
And the body temperature of these animals is slightly lower compared to horses - an average of 37, not 38 °C. Donkeys have a longer gestation period than horses.
Wild donkey (photo with cub - above) is a caring, hardy, hardworking animal.
Even during the construction of the famous Egyptian pyramids, these amazing, seemingly small animals participated as riding and pack animals. It turns out that the domestication of the donkey really took place in Egypt and Ethiopia back in the Upper Neolithic period, more than 5 thousand years ago.
