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QUAGGA, or COUAGGA, an animal of the genus Equus (see HORSE), nearly allied to Burchell's zebra, formerly met with in vast herds on the great plains of South Africa between the Cape Colony and the Vaal river, but now completely extinct. Generally speaking, the colour of the head, neck, and upper-parts of the body was reddish-brown, irregularly banded and marked with dark brown stripes, stronger on the head and neck and gradually becoming fainter until lost behind the shoulder. There is a broad dark median dorsal stripe. The under surface of the body, the legs, and tail are nearly white, without stripes. The crest is very high, surmounted by a standing mane, banded
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The Quagga (Equus quagga).
alternately brown and white. It is, however, not improbable that there were two or more local races, for which separate names have been proposed. Though never really domesticated, quaggas have occasionally been trained to harness. The accompanying illustration is reduced from a painting made from one of two which were driven in Hyde Park by Mr. Sheriff Parkins in the early part of the 19th century. The name is an imitation of the shrill barking neigh of the animal, " oug-ga, oug-ga," the last syllable very much prolonged; it is also commonly applied to the bonnte-quagga, or Burchell's zebra (see HORSE and ZEBRA).