Oddness and chaos have a particular niche in nature, in their own they create an unknown sphere that brings oddity in to our perception of nature by deconstructing what we see as normal. I have always known that nature is created through a chaotic and unstable cycle, in which all ecological processes rely on each other for survival.
George Perkins Marsh made notes of the natural world that can help us see our role in nature today, through his writings in Man and Nature which is filled with modern day problems, invasive species, the need for restoration, the failings of man to incorporate our species growth in a manner that is beneficial for nature, and not destructive. He also speaks to the problems of extinction; artificial creations that do natures work and only create more destruction in all environments and confusion for all species.

Through my observations while working at Kedar I have had the pleasure of coming across something spectacular, something confusing. I am sure it has never happened outside of reserves or perhaps ever documented in a reserve. Interspecies nursing is not an oddity and has occurred between the most extreme animals, for example a pig nursing tiger cubs in captivity. In captivity it does not seem that odd when thirsty cubs need milk and start to nurse off of any animals around. But in a reserve as big as ours at Kedar it is odd to see a Zebra nursing a baby Blessbok.
Specially when the mother of the baby is very much interested in rescuing her child from the kidnapping Zebra.

It was cool day with plenty of rain, the clouds began to scatter letting partial penetrations of sunlight warm the surface of the reserve. I was out with guests on an afternoon game drive, and earlier in the day I had noticed that the Sable had come down from the mountain tops to graze and sip some water from our lake. We were in search for the Sable when came across a baby nursing on a Zebra from a distance. I knew at a moments glance that the female was not nursing her own child, because first the baby was too small, and second the baby had no strips. I pulled up at a distance of 20 meters and we watched this baby Blessbok happily suck from the tit of the Zebra. The Zebra would then lower her head to clean and lick the baby Blessbok with a sense of motherly love.

A battled ensued for the protection of the baby Blessbok, every ten minutes the child’s mother would return to come and collect her baby. However the Zebra was being extremely over protective of the baby and would chase the mother off and threaten her with strong kicks aimed to demobilize the her. In the natural world there could be more than one explanation for this type of behavior from the Zebra. During the next couple of days I never found the pair and wondered if she grew bored or finally understood that kidnapping is a crime.