The quagga could be found in native sand paintings and was very plentiful throughout its range in southern South Africa. They could be found in great numbers throughout the plains of Karoo in New Province and the Orange Free State in South Africa. Native San farmers even used quaggas to protect their farm animals from predators since they were protective. When the Europeans arrived they began hunting the quagga for meat and for its uniquely striped hides. Quaggas struggled to survive the frequent hunting. The competition for space and food with the newly introduced domestic livestock also took its toll. The European horses struggled to survive in the harsh South African climate and the diseases found there. The quagga was considered for domestication because of its more docile nature compared to other types of zebras. The quagga was sought after by rich Europeans for the personal collections, and were taken to many European Zoos with mixed results. The population decline started in the 1850's in much of its range. By the late 1870's the last wild quagga was killed in the Orange Free State. From there, the quaggas kept in zoos began to die one by one. The London quagga died in 1872, the Berlin one in 1875. The final quagga died on August 12, 1883 in the Amsterdam Zoo, but no one knew it was extinct at the time. It is reported that the Amsterdam Zoo simply requested a replacement from South Africa, but none was ever to be found. It was officially declared extinct by an international committee in 1900. Could the quagga live in South Africa today? Although Jurassic Park is fiction, scientists are working on several de-extinction projects. In fact, in 2003 scientists did bring back the extinct Pyrenean ibex, a type of wild goat, for 7 minutes before it died, showing de-extinction is possible. The quagga might be a good candidate. Scientists would potentially use DNA from one of the 23 museum specimens to use to try to bring them back to life. To quote the naturalist Henry Bryden who in 1889 wrote: "That an animal so beautiful, so capable of domestication and use, and to be found not long since in so great abundance, should have been allowed to be swept from the face of the earth, is surely a disgrace to our latter-day civilization." If the quagga was brought back to life, it seems like its home range in South Africa would be ready for its return. The 'Rau quagga' from the Quagga Project are already being prepared to return to their original home range in Karoo in South Africa.