The kaha favor habitats consist of arid grasslands, shrub lands, mountainous steppes, and mountain ranges. 4 km/h (40 mph) to 70 km/h (43 mph). A group of Kaha is known as a "mob" or a "band". They are short legged compared to horses, and their coloring varies depending on the season.
Characteristics
Biology and Behavior
Characteristics
Kaha are short legged compared to other horses, and their coloring varies depending on the season. They are generally greenish brown in color during the summer, becoming yellowish-brown or black and grey in the winter. They have a black stripe bordered in white that extends down the middle of the back. The belly, the rump, and the muzzle are white in most kaha, although some have a broad black dorsal stripe bordered with white. Kaha generally weight about 440 to 640 lb in size and 6.9 to 8.2 ft in head-body length.
Biology and Behavior
The kaha favor habitats consist of arid grasslands, shrublands, mountainous steppes, and mountain ranges.
Like most equids, kaha are social animals. Stallions are either solitary or live in groups of two or three. The males have been observed holding harems of females, but in other studies, the dominant stallions defend territories that attract females. Differences in behavior and social structure likely are the result of changes in climate, vegetation cover, predation, and hunting.
In Mongolia and Central Asia a kaha stallion can adopt harem-type social groups with several mares and foals in large home areas in the southwest and territory-based social groups in the south and southeast. The patterns of their daily lives exhibit horse behavior similar to that of feral horse herds. Stallions herd, drive, and defend all members of their family, while the mares often display leadership in the family. Stallions and mares stay with their preferred partners for years. While behavioral synchronization is high among mares, stallions other than the main harem stallion are generally less stable in this respect.
The kaha are sexually mature at two years old, and the first mating usually takes place at three to four years old. Breeding is seasonal, and the gestation period of kaha is 11 months; the birth lasts a little more than 10 minutes. Mating and births occur from April to September, with an accumulation from June to July. The foal can stand and starts to nurse within 15 to 20 minutes. Females with young tend to form groups of up to five females. Wild kaha reach an age of 14 years, but in captivity, they can live up to 26 years.
Like all equids, kaha are herbivorous mammals. They eat grasses, herbs, leaves, fruits, and saline vegetation when available, but browse on shrubs and trees in drier habitats. They have also been seen feeding on seed pods and breaking up woody vegetation with their hooves to get at more succulent herbs growing at the base of woody plants.
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