*Hartmann’s Mountain Zebra | Equus zebra hartmanni, near Khowarib Lodge (Mike Watson)*

“Why is this meal taking so long?”

That was the thought going through my mind 16 years ago at De Hoop Nature Reserve in South Africa’s Western Cape. I was keen to find Mountain Zebra, for which the reserve is famous, and was becoming increasingly frustrated at the amount of time we were spending sitting around a dining table when all I wanted to do was get out into the field and look for them.

“Don’t worry, they’ll be on the plain near the HQ.”

Well, they weren’t that time.

By the time we had finished our meal, there was no longer enough time to search more extensively. They couldn’t have been too far away. They are resident at De Hoop, but we had simply run out of time.

“One of those things.”

The disappointment has gnawed away at the back of my mind ever since; it still does.

Cape Mountain Zebra is the nominate of the two Mountain Zebra subspecies:

Cape Mountain Zebra — Equus zebra zebra
Hartmann’s Mountain Zebra — Equus zebra hartmanni

*Hartmann’s Mountain Zebra | Equus zebra hartmanni, River Crossing Lodge, Windhoek (Mike Watson) - how many in this image?*

FAST FORWARD TO JULY 2026

I was feeling a bit sleepy after a long journey and a morning spent transferring guests from Windhoek Airport. After eventually dropping my bags in my chalet at River Crossing Lodge, I stepped onto the veranda and raised my binoculars to scan the distant hillside.

There was a group of Southern Oryx, or Gemsbok, in the valley below, while a distant ridgeline looked promising for Verreaux’s Eagle. I also knew that Eland was occasionally seen in the area.

Then, almost instantly, some very distant mammals caught my eye.

They were far too distant for me to identify through my binoculars, so I reached for my camera and used its zoom to take a closer look.

Imagine my surprise when I saw they were zebras, and that they had two very bold black stripes on their hindquarters.

BINGO! Their barcodes read Hartmann’s Mountain Zebra.

How lucky was that?

They remained as a very distant handful of pixels, but provided a nice distraction just minutes before the official start of my Wild Images tour.

*Hartmann’s Mountain Zebra | Equus zebra hartmanni, Damaraland (Mike Watson)*

A CLOSER LOOK

We had to wait another week before reaching the wilds of Namibia’s Damaraland; true Mountain Zebra country. We marvelled at the rugged landscape created by the Damara orogeny; the collision of tectonic plates around 600-650 million years ago, which caused the earth’s crust to buckle and in some places melt. This created a spectacular mess of folded sedimentary rock, some of which was turned metamorphic and where the rocks melted, granite intrusions rose up from far below the surface. It is one of the world’s must-see geological locations, as well as for its special wildlife.

During our road trip around Namibia, we spent a lot of time worrying about the availability of diesel, so we were mightily relieved to discover that the crucial fuel station at Palmwag in Damaraland was operating.

Another couple was at the station, and they headed off before us. Around 20 kilometres later, we found them stopped beside the road, looking at something.

A herd of Mountain Zebras!

Magic!

We parked up and walked towards the zebras, across a grassy plain scattered with quartz pebbles. Unfortunately, they were nervous. Most of the herd soon trotted away and disappeared from view, although their bold stallion remained behind for a while, standing his ground and keeping a watchful eye on us.

Even so, it was a real privilege to see Hartmann’s Mountain Zebras at a much closer range.

CLOSER ENCOUNTERS

Hartmann’s Mountain Zebra is larger and more robust than the Cape Mountain Zebra but both are immediately distinguishable from the local form of Plains Zebra (Equus quagga) by the bold striping on the hindquarters and their more donkey-like proportions.

Hartmann’s also has a white belly and black stripes extending down the legs to the pointed hooves. Another distinctive feature is the distinct dewlap, a flap of loose skin beneath the neck. Its exact function is not fully understood, although it may provide visual information about an animal’s age or condition and could potentially have a role in thermoregulation.

Then, after another seven kilometres, my tour leader, Gin Wilde, spotted another herd beside the gravel road.

They were a little closer, although not particularly photogenic, so we pressed on.

Another 40 kilometres of spectacular Damaraland scenery passed by in the soft evening sunshine.

Then the radio crackled into life again.

Emerging from her dust cloud, we could see that Gin had done it again.

She had found more Mountain Zebras and this time the herd was more or less point-blank beside the road.

WOW!

Now that was something.

For me, it was the best wildlife encounter of the entire tour, they paused in lovely golden light to look at us, with a nice background. After all these years, Gin made my dream come true.

We could hardly have wished for a better view of these dazzling wild horses. And if you look for better images of Hartmann’s Mountain Zebra online, there really aren’t many. They are normally quite shy. We were so lucky!

A mini celebration at the wonderful Khowarib Lodge, just a little further along the road, was definitely in order.

Thank you, Gin!

HARTMANN'S MOUNTAIN ZEBRA