(Inside Science) — A gangrene-inducing bite in Africa, 40 years of curiosity, and backyard experiments her daughters still complain about have all come together to tell Alison Cobb one thing: Stripes help zebras keep their cool. New research published this week in the Journal of Natural History shows stripes may create air flows that give zebras a kind of natural air conditioning system that helps them ward off the blazing sun.
“It’s about thermoregulation to avoid the heat and cold,” said Cobb, a retired amateur naturalist, who conducted the research with her zoologist husband, Stephen Cobb. Other scientists argue the main reason for stripes is to deter biting insects.
