Animals at a French Zoo - African Wild Ass - Ass in paddock. Part of Box 209 Boswell collection - Old and New French Zoo. Slide 158. The African wild ass is a wild member of the horse family. This species is believed to be the ancestor of the domestic donkey. They live in the deserts and other arid areas of the Horn of Africa, in Eritrea, Ethiopia and Somalia. About 570 individuals exist in the wild.