“Meet Tira, the world’s rarest zebra. 🦓 Tira was born with melanism - an increased amount of black or nearly black pigmentation. Tira’s coat looks brownish in most places and seems to have spots instead of stripes. Each zebra has a unique set of stripes that are said to function as a distraction to ward off horseflies. These flies are irritating and dangerous. So not only does little Tira have to worry about horseflies, but also about standing out, which is not the goal when you’re considered prey to many in the vast grasslands of the Masai Mara. It is also believed that the stripes help regulate a zebra’s temperature. How do you think that might affect Tira?” 📸 + caption by Ashish Parmar (ashishparmarphotography) . . . . #adventure #travel #nature #photography #photooftheday #naturephotography #instagood #adventure #wildlifeIG #MasaiMaraNationalReserve #tira #zebra #unique #wildlife #wow #baby