Villagers in Alton Barnes had to do a double take on Tuesday when they saw this zebra where the famous white horse usually stands.

The horseplay saw the 201-year-old chalk landmark sporting black stripes, fashioned from plastic sheeting, across its body and a black nose as part of an April fools prank.

Mike Lynch, of Goddard Road in Pewsey, spotted the new look while taking his dog for a walk.

He said: “I thought it was brilliant and then April 1st came to mind and I thought someone had a good sense of humour.

“I remember a few years ago when the white horse in Pewsey was covered over with grass in the build-up to carnival and then it appeared in the procession and it reminded me of that.

“Quite a lot of people stopped to take photos.”

It is not the first time the horse, which sits on Milk Hill, has undergone such a makeover; it was also turned into a zebra in 2003.

Land owner Tim Carson said: “It attracted a lot of intention and it’s a bit of harmless fun.

“Whoever did it went back in the evening and took it down, which was nice because last time it happened I had to go up and take it down. They were polite pranksters.”