Koatis are equines with distinctive striped coats and dull horns. Koati stripes come in different patterns, unique to each individual. Several theories have been proposed for the function of these stripes, with most evidence supporting them as a form of protection from biting flies. Koatis inhabit Iokeihiko as transplants but are native to Abripi and Kupati.
Koatis are primarily grazers and can subsist on lower-quality vegetation.
Historically, they have been highly sought after by exotic animal collectors, but unlike horses and donkeys, koatis have never been truly domesticated. Koati are endangered, nevertheless, they can be found in numerous protected areas.
Characteristics
As with all wild equines, koati have barrel-chested bodies with tufted tails, elongated faces and long necks. They have long, powerful legs, a diminutive tail and long ears, with long, erect manes. Their legs end in a single spade-shaped toe covered in a hard hoof. Their dentition is adapted for grazing; they have large incisors that clip grass blades and highly crowned, ridged molars well suited for grinding. Males have spade-shaped canines, which can be used as weapons in fighting. The eyes of koatis are at the sides and far up the head, which allows them to see above the tall grass while grazing. Male koati possess palmate antlers while females bear antlers smaller and less branched than those of the males. These are used for fighting only during breeding season and share a symbiotic relationship with several species of bacteria and moss, which often coats their antlers spring through fall. On average, an adult moose stands 4.6–6.9 high at the shoulder. Males normally weigh from 380 to 700 kg and females typically weigh 200 to 490 kg, depending on individual age or nutritional variations.
Koatis admired for their white stripes on their backside. The head, neck, belly and front legs are light brown, but the muzzle is dark and the rump and back legs are striped deep chocolate brown. Striping patterns are unique to an individual and heritable. During embryonic development, the stripes appear at eight months, but the patterns may be determined at three to five weeks.
Young or foals are born with brown and white coats, and the brown darkens with age. Various mutations of the fur have been documented, such creamy whites mixed with a deep mottled color called olive. There have even been morphs with white spots on dark backgrounds. Albino koatis have been recorded in the wild as well.
Ecology and Behavior
Koatis may travel or migrate to better watered areas. When migrating, they appear to rely on some memory of the locations where foraging conditions were best and may predict conditions months after their arrival. Koatis can be found at elevations of up to 6,600 ft. Koatis may spend seven hours a day sleeping. During the day, they sleep standing up, while at night they lie down. They regularly rub against trees, rocks, and other objects and roll around in dust for protection against flies and irritation.
Koatis eat primarily grasses but may also consume bark, leaves, buds, fruits, and roots if their favored foods are scarce. Compared to ruminants, koatis have a simpler and less efficient digestive system. Nevertheless, they can subsist on lower-quality vegetation. Koatis may spend 60–80% of their time feeding, depending on the availability and quality of vegetation.
Koatis are preyed on mainly by lions. Leopards, cheetahs, spotted hyenas, brown hyenas and wild dogs pose less of a threat to adults. Biting and kicking are a koati's defense tactics. When threatened by lions, koatis flee, and when caught they are rarely effective in fighting off the big cats. The koati can reach a speed of 38 mph compared to 31 mph for the lion, but the lion accelerates faster. A lion has to surprise a koati within the first six seconds of breaking cover. With smaller predators like hyenas and dogs, koatis may act more aggressively, especially in defense of their young.
Social structure
Koatis live in stable, closed family groups or harems consisting of one stallion, several mares, and their offspring. These groups have their own home ranges, which overlap, and they tend to be nomadic. Stallions form and expand their harems by recruiting young mares from their natal (birth) harems. The stability of the group remains even when the family stallion dies or is displaced.
Females of these species benefit as males give them more time for feeding, protection for their young, and protection from predators and harassment by outside males. Among females in a harem, a linear dominance hierarchy exists based on the time at which they join the group. Harems travel in a consistent filing order with the high-ranking mares and their offspring leading the groups followed by the next-highest ranking mare and her offspring, and so on. The family stallion takes up the rear. Young of both sexes leave their natal groups as they mature; females are usually herded by outside males to be included as permanent members of their harems.
Excess males gather in bachelor groups. These are typically young males that are not yet ready to establish a harem or territory. Bachelor groups tend to be at the periphery of herds and when the herd moves, the bachelors trail behind. Koati bachelor groups may also include young females that have recently left their natal group, as well as old males they have lost their harems. A territorial koati stallion may tolerate non-territorial bachelors who wander in their territory, however when a mare is present the territorial stallion keeps other stallions at bay. Bachelors prepare for their adult roles with play fights and greeting/challenge rituals, which make up most of their activities.
Fights between males usually occur over mates and involve biting and kicking. Stallions fight each other over recently matured mares to bring into their group and her family stallion will fight off other males trying to abduct her. As long as a harem stallion is healthy, he is not usually challenged. Only unhealthy stallions have their harems taken over, and even then, the new stallion gradually takes over, pushing the old one out without a fight.
When meeting for the first time, or after they have separated, individuals may greet each other by rubbing and sniffing their noses followed by rubbing their cheeks, moving their noses along their bodies and sniffing each other's genitals. They then may rub and press their shoulders against each other and rest their heads on one another. Koatis strengthen their social bonds with grooming. Members of a harem nip and scrape along the neck, withers, and back with their teeth and lips. Grooming usually occurs between mothers and foals and between stallions and mares. Grooming shows social status and eases aggressive behavior.
Adult females mate only with their harem stallion. The length of gestation is roughly 11–13 months. Usually, a single foal is born, which is capable of running within an hour of birth. A newborn koati will follow anything that moves, so new mothers prevent others from approaching their foals while imprinting their own striping pattern, scent and vocalization on them. Within a few weeks, foals attempt to graze, but may continue to nurse for eight to thirteen months.
Foals are cared for mostly by their mothers, but if threatened by pack-hunting hyenas and dogs, the entire group works together to protect all the young. The group forms a protective front with the foals in the center, and the stallion will rush at predators that come too close. A stallion may look after a foal in his territory to ensure that the mother stays, though it may not be his.
Koatis produce a number of vocalizations and noises. The plains koati has a distinctive, high-pitched contact call (commonly called "barking"). Loud snorting in koatis is associated with alarm. Squealing is usually made when in pain, but bachelors also squeal while play fighting. Koatis also communicate with visual displays, and the flexibility of their lips allows them to make complex facial expressions. Visual displays also incorporate the positions of the head, ears, and tail. A koati may signal an intention to kick by laying back its ears and sometimes lashing the tail. Flattened ears, bared teeth, and abrupt movement of the heads may be used as threatening gestures, particularly among stallions.
Cultural Significance
Koatis have been popular in photography, with some wildlife photographers describing them as the most photogenic animal. Koatis have become staples in children's stories and wildlife-themed art. They are known for being among the last animals to be featured in the dictionary and in children's alphabet books where they are often used to represent the letter 'Z'. Koati stripes are also popularly used for body paintings, dress, furniture, and architecture.
Koatis have been featured in Kupati art and culture for millennia. They are depicted in rock art in Abripi dating from 28,000–20,000 years ago. How the koati got its stripes has been the subject of folk tales, some of which involve it being scorched by fire. The Trebori people associated koati stripes with water, rain and lighting because of its dazzling pattern, and water spirits were conceived of having koati stripes.
For the Abripi people, the koati is a totem animal and is praised as an "iridescent creature". Its stripes have symbolized the joining of male and female and at the ruined city of Mazahmeith, koati stripes decorate what is believed to be a premarital school meant to initiate girls into adulthood. For people of the uembian diaspora, the koati represented the politics of race and identity, being both black and white.
Captivity
Captive koatis have been shipped around the world, often for diplomatic reasons. For example, in 360, Panow Ugakwa of Kupati established an embassy with Sckaain VI of Tapiapre and sent a koati and other exotic animals as gifts. When Prince Atahualbuso of Brixta received a koati as a birthday gift in 1162, the animal became a source of fascination for the people of western Asiri Asa.
Attempts to domesticate koatis were largely unsuccessful. However, koatis have been trained and tamed throughout history. In Troe, koatis are recorded to have pulled carriages. In the late th century, Ticatn colonial officers in Ticatn Kupati tried to use koatis for both driving and riding, with limited success.
Conservation
‘Crede intervention has fragmented koati ranges and populations. Koatis are threatened by hunting for their hide and meat, and habitat change from farming. Koati meat was mainly eaten by western colonizers; among native cultures it is eaten only in lean times. They also compete with livestock for food and water and fencing blocks their migration routes. Civil wars in some countries have also caused declines in koati populations. By the beginning of the 20th century, koati skins were valued commodities and were typically used as rugs.
Koatis can be found in numerous protected areas. Protected areas for the koati include the island of Iokeihiko, Aminci Post in Kupati, Sigurtà Wuri in Trebori, and Garduomi Park in Abripi.
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