'ELEMENTARY'
"THE FEMALE OF THE SPECIES"
As we all (should) know, Toobworld is different from the Real World - they have aliens and androids, talking animals, talking food, extra nations on the map.
But the off-shoot TV dimension of "Lit-Less Toobworld" (in which literary characters exist in a world that doesn't contain their original inspirations, like Sherlock Holmes and Ichabod Crane, maybe even Dracula!) has something that the main Toobworld of Earth Prime-Time doesn't even have:
Quagga!
From Wikipedia:
The quagga (Equus quagga quagga) is an extinct subspecies of the plains zebra that lived in South Africa until the nineteenth century. It was long thought to be a distinct species, but genetic studies have shown it to be the southernmost subspecies of the plains zebra. It is considered particularly close to Burchell's zebra. Its name is derived from its call, which sounds like "kwa-ha-ha".
The quagga is believed to have been around 257 cm (8 ft 5 in) long and 125–135 cm (4 ft 1 in–4 ft 5 in) tall at the shoulder. It was distinguished from other zebras by its limited pattern of primarily brown and white stripes, mainly on the front part of the body. The rear was brown and without stripes, and therefore more horse-like. The distribution of stripes varied considerably between individuals. Little is known about the quagga's behaviour, but it may have gathered into herds of 30–50 individuals. Quaggas were said to be wild and lively, yet were also considered more docile than Burchell's zebra. They were once found in great numbers in the Karoo of Cape Province and the southern part of theOrange Free State in South Africa.
Since Dutch settlement of South Africa began, the quagga was heavily hunted as it competed with domesticated animals for forage. While some individuals were taken to zoos in Europe, breeding programs were not successful. The last wild population lived in the Orange Free State, and the quagga was extinct in the wild by 1878. The last captive specimen died in Amsterdam on 12 August 1883. Only one quagga was ever photographed alive and only 23 skins are preserved today. In 1984, the quagga was the first extinct animal to have its DNA analysed, and the Quagga Project is trying to recreate the phenotype of hair coat pattern and related characteristics by selectively breeding Burchell's zebras.
The quagga is believed to have been around 257 cm (8 ft 5 in) long and 125–135 cm (4 ft 1 in–4 ft 5 in) tall at the shoulder. It was distinguished from other zebras by its limited pattern of primarily brown and white stripes, mainly on the front part of the body. The rear was brown and without stripes, and therefore more horse-like. The distribution of stripes varied considerably between individuals. Little is known about the quagga's behaviour, but it may have gathered into herds of 30–50 individuals. Quaggas were said to be wild and lively, yet were also considered more docile than Burchell's zebra. They were once found in great numbers in the Karoo of Cape Province and the southern part of theOrange Free State in South Africa.
Since Dutch settlement of South Africa began, the quagga was heavily hunted as it competed with domesticated animals for forage. While some individuals were taken to zoos in Europe, breeding programs were not successful. The last wild population lived in the Orange Free State, and the quagga was extinct in the wild by 1878. The last captive specimen died in Amsterdam on 12 August 1883. Only one quagga was ever photographed alive and only 23 skins are preserved today. In 1984, the quagga was the first extinct animal to have its DNA analysed, and the Quagga Project is trying to recreate the phenotype of hair coat pattern and related characteristics by selectively breeding Burchell's zebras.
For even more on this lamented beastie, click here.
The 'Elementary' episode didn't elaborate on what was the fate of the two baby quagga, and I'm hoping that they were a boy and a girl so that they could be bred to revive the species on that world.
If only the same eventually can happen in the Real World as well......
BCnU!
I would start a Wiki Wednesday, but I'd get bored......
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