Species group · Mammals

Asses

WAnimals has 2 species of ass, all in the family Equidae.

2 species
1 family
16 countries
Weight
80 kg – 480 kg
Length
1.2 m – 2.5 m
Lifespan
25 – 30 years

Ranges calculated from the entries that record the figure, not from all 2.

All 2 species of asses on WAnimals

Each one has its own full entry. This group does not replace them: it brings them together.

Conservation status

1 Critically Endangered1 Not Evaluated

1 especies in this group están en alguna categoría de riesgo real según la UICN.

See the global conservation status

Where they live

Recorded in 16 countries. The ones with the most species in the group:

Did you know…

  • It is the wild ancestor of every domestic donkey in the world.

    From African Wild Ass

  • Barely a few hundred pure animals remain in the wild, in Eritrea and Ethiopia.

    From African Wild Ass

  • Males defend territories of up to 23 km², marked with dung piles.

    From African Wild Ass

  • Its wild ancestor, the African wild ass, is critically endangered today: probably fewer than two hundred animals are left in the Horn of Africa.

    From Ass

  • Crossed with a mare it produces the mule, and a jenny crossed with a stallion produces the hinny; both are almost always sterile because they have an odd number of chromosomes.

    From Ass

  • It was domesticated in eastern Africa more than 7,000 years ago, according to the analysis of ancient and modern genomes published in 2022, and from there the African and Eurasian lineages split and diverged.

    From Ass

Ecosystems

See every species group · Explore the species one by one