British photographer captures moment zebra was born this month

A British photographer captured the moment a zebra was born this month.

Wildlife guide and conservationist Paul Goldstein spotted the heavily pregnant mum-to-be in Kenya’s Masai Mara.

The female took less than twenty minutes to deliver her foal in the Olare Conservancy, and the youngster immediately was up on its hooves.

Wimbledon-based Paul explains: “In the New Year, if the light rains come, the freshly leavened grass seems to prompt zebras to give birth, but it is very rare to see.

“This was very long lens stuff as it is precarious enough for both mother and foal without tourists driving all over them bringing attention to this vulnerable situation.

“It took 19 minutes from birth to standing. No more than 300 metres away lions were surveying potential prey from a rocky outcrop but did not spot the newborn. If they had it would have been no contest.

“An adult zebra is a formidable adversary for a lion but not a newborn. The thoughts behind the predator’s myopia was that had this been a topi or gnu they would have spotted the infant immediately but the harsh black and white stripes perhaps confuse the cats.

“Both mother and calf moved off after an hour – the youngster was always the far side of its parent.

“This was only 500 metres from camp and we heard the lions feeding that night, but not on a striped quarry.”

Paul Goldstein co-owns Kicheche, four eco-gold small camps in Kenyan Conservancies.