Cephalophus zebra
zebra duiker

Cephalophus zebra is found in primary forest areas in the mid-western part of Africa; It inhabits the regions of Sierra Leone and the Ivory Coast, but is most commonly distributed in the eastern central country of Liberia (Kingdon, 1997).

The zebra duiker is found in primary forests from low-lying areas such as river valleys to hill-forest habitats (Kingdon, 1997).

Cephalophus zebra, also known by the common name zebra duiker, has black vertical stripes over a cream colored area which is located dorsally on the mid-torso. The ventral surface is a solid cream color. The head, neck, rump, and limbs are red-brown with some patches of black found near the joints of the limbs (Kingdon, 1997).

Zebra duikers have a short, yet muscular stature, standing approximately 40-50 cm tall and weighing up to 20 kg (Kingdon, 1997). The limbs are short in relation to the body. Cephalophus zebra also has a pair of short and rounded horns, these horns taper sharply and point posteriorly (Kingdon, 1997). Sexual dimorphism occurs in this species with females being consistantly larger than male duikers (Wilson et. al., 1984). (Kingdon, 1997; Wilson, Schmidt, and Hanks, 1984)

Zebra duikers are solitary animals except when paired with a mate or when raising an infant. Mating pairs often engage in mutual rubbing or licking of preorbital glands (Vaughan et. al., 2000). Mating pairs are also defend their territory. Both sexes have horns and will use them to attack invading duikers.

The stripes on the back of Cephalophus zebra are a visual defense mechanism. A predator's attention is focused on the animal's movement, rather than their body outlines (Kingdon, 1997).

Infant care in zebra duikers is extremely important for both females and males, especially because of the long gestation period. In addition, zebra duikers mature slowly "suggesting that prolonged learning may be necessary for successful exploitation of a difficult environment," (Kingdon, 1997).

Zebra duikers are fruit and foliage browsers. Their diet includes leaves, shoots, and seasonal fruits (Owen-Smith, 1997). Due to the duiker's short stature, they are not able to forage on fruits and leaves that exist in tall trees. Much of the food they consume is provided by climbing or flying animals such as monkeys, bats, or birds which will accidentally dislodge fruit or leaves to the forest floor during their normal foraging activities. Duikers will then feed upon this dropped vegetation (Kingdon, 1997).

Cephalophus zebra have a thickening of the frontal bone in the skull which seems to serve as a tool for cracking open hard-shelled fruits (Kingdon, 1997). This enables them to access a food source which is not available to many other forest inhabitants which cannot open these fruits.

Humans rarely encounter zebra duikers in the wild but they are sometimes hunted for their meat (Kingdon, 1997).

Zebra duikers are limited to primary forest areas which are currently becoming restricted due to logging and development. Cephalophus zebra is considered threatened due to forest destruction. In areas such as Sierra Leone and the Ivory Coast populations are considered close to extinction (Kingdon, 1997).

Zebra duikers as well as other members of Cephalophus are believed to resemble ancestral bovids (Vaughan et. al., 2000).