How do wildebeest, zebras, and Thomson’s gazelles use grazing succession on the Serengeti plains?

On the Serengeti plains, grazing succession is a mechanism that allows multiple herbivore species to maximize the use of environmental resources by feeding on the same vegetation at different stages.1

This process functions as a sequence of ecological "clearing":

• Zebras: As perissodactyls, zebras are less efficient at digesting protein from high-quality grasses than ruminants, but they can process large quantities of low-quality, high-fiber forage. They graze first, cropping the taller, coarser grass stems that other species cannot effectively utilize.21
• Wildebeests: Following the zebras, wildebeests—which are artiodactyls—graze on the ground that has already been cleared by the zebras.1
• Thomson’s gazelles: Finally, the Thomson’s gazelle feeds on the remaining vegetation, which has been left in a condition specifically suitable for their smaller, more selective feeding requirements.1

By feeding in this order, these animals minimize competition and ensure that the maximum nutritional value is extracted from the grassland ecosystem.1