Predation can have very important effects on both the ecology and evolution of biological communities. In particular predation may impose a strong selection pressure for more efficient predators and less vulnerable prey. In addition, more and more evidence show that predators affect prey not only directly by killing them, but that they can also influence their behaviour and induce morphological and physiological responses. Yet today, little is known about how predators limit prey populations, especially in large herbivores. The most detailed studies on large herbivores are indeed located in the northern hemisphere, often in places where these herbivores have no predators. In this thesis I have studied a population of large herbivores and the impact of predation on it: the population of plains zebras (Equus quagga) in Hwange National Park in Zimbabwe and their interaction with the lions. I studied the dynamics of populations of zebras in our study area, but I also studied zebra behaviour at the individual level, trying to understand the anti-predator behaviours used by zebras and what their potential costs were, focusing on individual differences. This population of zebras was strongly impacted by predation, indirectly as well as directly, and the anti-predator behaviours were costly.
