Diurnal Activity Patterns of Burchelli Zebra (Equus burchelli) in Captivity at Zoological Garden, Alipore, Kolkata, India

A study was conducted on the diurnal behavioural pattern and activity time budget of a captive female burchelli zebra (Equus burchelli) in the Zoological Garden, Alipore, West Bengal, India, from 10.00 to 17.00 h between October 2022 to June 2023including winter and summer seasons by using focal sampling method with 25,200 minutes of observations. Data were analyzed by assessing mean time spent percentage for different activities in different hours and different seasons. Differences in the seasonal and hourly time budget were tested using one-way ANOVA, followed by DMRT. Grazing was dominant with significantly (P<0.05; DMRT) maximum time spent, followed by standing, feeding of offered feed, resting and then locomotion during both the seasons. Between seasons, significantly higher (P<0.05; DMRT) grazing (32.72%±0.92), walking (7.58%±0.77) and sleeping (7.18%±0.24) behaviours were observed during summer, while the other activities during the winter. During summer, from 12:00-13:00 h, grazing was the lowest, while resting was most. During winter, resting was more in the 1^st hour of observation. The zebra devoted 2.12% to 2.21% of their time towards vigilance behaviour which was with higher rate during winter. This individual-based behavioural study on captive zebra will be useful for taking a well comprehensive management plan to ensure its successful in-situ conservation as well as its welfare.   Keywords: Activity Time Budget, Behavioural Pattern, Burchelli Zebra, Focal Sampling, Seasons.