The Case of Confusing Stripes
Zebras in their Pursuit of Survival
Presentation matters. As they say, ‘making a good first impression’ rules even today. Be it in an interview, a client presentation or a meeting with someone you are trying to impress. We morph presentations to highlight what we wish to. Often a particular brand is impressed upon or a target market, often it’s a specific audience or a particular marketing strategy. We camouflage and dress up our sales pitches as per the needs of the hour.
No different in the wilderness. Did you know that each zebra has its own unique stripes, much like fingerprints of humans? The question is why has nature chosen so? Interesting to observe that several explanations prevail. The most popular amongst these being that they move in herds and this is a classic way to blend in with other zebras of the herd. Purpose of such camouflage? Lions, their key predators, are colour blind and are deemed to be confused to see a large herd of stripes, making it difficult to focus on any one prey and kill. A large group of moving stripes diminishes individual attention and shifts attention to the group. This disables any predator from focusing on any one zebra, thereby increasing chances of survival.
Team effort prevails over individual achievement, an oft spoken about team strategy. Look at a game of cricket for example. A no brainer to understand why the power of team-play overrides the shine of any one individual. Cut to the wild and this singular aspect becomes the defining line between life and death. Focussing on self is never enough, however placing the team above own goals, more often than not, is a wise decision.
Rule of any predator is to focus on the weak or the old, as is the case with competition. We look for a weak link in the opposition, a poor defense and the right situation to attack. A strong team ensures that the entire team’s strengths are focussed upon, camouflaging individual weaknesses. A brilliantly camouflaged team of zebras makes identification of the weak, the foal or the old a very difficult task. The low performer is saved by a combined strength of the group as competition gets demotivated and the task of attack becomes that much more difficult.
When zebras are in motion, predators have a difficult time distinguishing where one zebra ends and the next begins. Their stripes make individual zebras harder to pick out in a herd. This confuses lions. This easy tact of confusing competition is easy to understand. Imagine in corporate life. Is it easy for teams to devise ways to evade competition?
Distract and achieve your goals has been a popular strategy in war and in sports. While the enemy line of offense gets busy in attacking a key warrior or player, before you notice it, a strike is made by the most innocuous of persons. Here in the wild, when each day of survival is cause for celebration, there is more reason to distract and confuse predators while winning over one extra day in this beautiful world.