Basic behavior:


- Plains Zebras are one of Africa's most adaptable and successful grazers, being considered not very picky eaters they feed on a wide variety of grasses from different stages of growth as well as living in various different habitats. They're preferred type of pasture are very wet grasses and that helps prepare the pasture for other antelopes like wildebeests and gazelles, however, it is one of the most water dependant plains game along with buffalos and elephants making it very vulnerable to severe droughts. Zebras activity schedules are very irregular and depend on the season and habitat. During daylight hours they typically spend a lot of time grazing, with intervals of dust bathing, rubbing against surfaces such as rocks or logs, drinking, and rather brief unregular rest periods. In dry days, herds of zebras start moving at sunrise going from pasture to pasture and settle in one during the afternoon where play and bonding times reach their peak and when they stop at a particular feeding spot, the herd members spread out a few meters apart and go on with their daily activities. At night zebras don't move a lot and rest while one member of the herd stands guard, they also graze for shorter periods of time than during the day.

- Plains zebras are highly social animals amongst their own species and exhibit the usual medium-sized herbivorous herd structures, which include 3 herd types which can be resident or join in migrations:

Harems are herds consisting of unrelated mares of different ages with their foals, a mare which is the leader of the herd, and decides where to go (usually the oldest female of the herd) and a stallion that acts as a protector against other stallions and predators. These herds travel, rest and cultivate strong bonds with each other which can last years on end, the herds move in lines having the lead mare at the front and the stallion at the very back. Harems are founded when a stallion manages to take a young filly in heat away from her father's harem by dominating him in a fight, then the young stallion must protect her from other stallions every time she comes into heat until she conceives for the first time, then no male will be interested in her and will remain in the harem where she conceived in for the rest of her life. To acquire more members the stallion must continue to abduct more young fillies. A stallion owning a harem can be replaced by a new one if he doesn't fight back at all against a bachelor which is shadowing the herd and gradually pushing him away. 

Bachelor herds are the second herd social structure exhibited by Plains Zebra, they consist of young stallions which have left their natal harem and joined a group of other males in order to look for company and mates. The leader of these herds is usually the oldest and fittest male in it and it is determined by half-serious fights or intimidation displays. When bachelors are old enough (5 years old) they usually leave their herd and look for fillies in heat to start their own harems.

Migratory herds are zebras from all social structures (the above and solitary), joining together in one single unite in order to look for fresh pastures beyond the individual home ranges of each herd or individual. When moving the herds do not fully mix and retain their classical movements and member structures and the same goes when stopping to graze or rest at a pasture. They are no defined leaders and it usually takes one or two individuals to start moving the rest follows. All the set behaviors mentioned above can still very much happen in these large congregations of zebras.

- Plains zebras have no particular mating seasons, however, birthing usually occurs during the start of the rainy season, and therefore a few weeks later the female is ready falls into estrous again. During the mating process, the male must court the female by rubbing his muzzle on her and sides, while also sniffing her and occasionally nipping at her. The female can try to discourage him by kicking him and running away, however, the behavior can also just be playing hard to get without a way to completely reject his advances.

- Plains zebra are very alert animals and generally have better vision than most other plains game, when a predator has been located, the zebras stare at it attentively until it moves away or they do, though stallions with a harem tend to follow closely the predators until they move to a safe distance. When being attacked by big cats (cheetahs, leopards, and lions) zebras tend to run away if they were ambushed by them, however, the stallion will try to keep to the rear of the herd in order to push away the predator by kicking them or biting them, if said predator are cheetahs, leopards or lone lionesses. Male lions, multiple lions, and crocodiles are too be avoided and a harem stallion cannot protect its herd members from them. When it comes to hyenas and painted wolves, zebras generally start to switch between canter, trotting and sprinting (for a short amount of time) in order to not waste stamina and do so bunching together very closely in order to protect weaker members of the herd while the harem stallion keeps to the rear of the herd and tries to kick, bite and push away the hyenas from his herd, other members when having the hyenas close to them can also kick to protect themselves. When it comes to other small predators zebras usually tolerate them as long as they don't invade their personal space.

- Plains zebras are quite tolerant of other animals as long as they don't come to close to their personal space. Bachelors are also quite curious and can sometimes turn that curiousness into aggression, going to even kick young herbivores or chase adults on short distances that they are confident to chase off. If the animal is bigger then them however they usually avoid conflict and move away.