The Racine Zoo has a new Hartmann's mountain zebra, a female foal born in the early morning hours of Oct. 12.
She is the third foal of this species born at the zoo and the first female. Her mother is Promise and her father is Obi.
The zoo said the birth followed a recommendation from the Hartmann's Mountain Zebra Species Survival Plan. The species is considered vulnerable in its native habitat in southern Africa, so the foal adds to wider conservation efforts.
Animal care and veterinary staff monitored Promise through a pregnancy that lasts about a year. Staff first suspected she was pregnant in the fall of 2025, and an ultrasound confirmed it this past spring. In the final weeks, keepers watched her around the clock with night-vision cameras and tracked her behavior and condition for the veterinary team.
Curator of Animal Care and Conservation Dan Powell credited the animal care specialists and medical team for their work during the pregnancy. The zoo described the pregnancy as uneventful, said Promise is caring well for the foal, and plans to introduce her to the public in the near future. The foal does not yet have a name, and the zoo is inviting votes on its Facebook page.
