Wild Horses

Wild horses are horses that roam in wilderness areas of the world. Wild horses, strictly speaking, are horses descended from horses that have never been domesticated. More broadly, horses that have escaped into the wilds or that have been born wild are feral horses. The only remaining wild horse is the Asian wild horse, also known as the dun-colored, black-maned equids of Mongolia, which are a national symbol. The wild Mongolian horse is called Takhi in Mongolian, meaning “spirit” or “spiritual.” Russian General Nikolai Przhevalsky (1839–88) first identified the Mongolian wild horse as unique, and he went to Mongolia in the 1880s to search for the horse because it was so rare. In 1900 Carl Hagenbeck captured some, which were put into zoos. Some of these reproduced and their stock was re-introduced into the wilds of Mongolia in 1992 after repeated attempts to locate wild stocks from 1960 onward failed. In 2006 the wild population was around 1,500; they were all descended from animals bred in zoos. Przewalski's (from the Polish spelling of Przhevalsky) horses are about the size of large ponies, are muscular in body, and have a heavy head. Their color is usually light brown, with a black tail, mane, and lower legs, but a white muzzle.

All the other horses in the world that are called wild horses are actually feral horses. That is, they are domesticated horses that have escaped into the wilds, or they are descended from horses that were originally domesticated, but which were either abandoned or escaped into wild areas. Christopher Columbus brought horses with him on his second voyage (1493–96) to the New World. By 1600 a number of Spanish horses had escaped into the great open spaces of the sparsely settled America. They soon grew into great herds, which transformed the lifestyle of the Plains Indians into a horse culture. Descendants of some of these horses still roam wilderness areas of the American West. They are often called mustangs, which is an English pronunciation of the Spanish word mesteno for “stray” or “wild.” Many Americans view mustangs as a symbol of America's frontier heritage. Before passage of the Wild FreeRoaming Horse and Burro Act (1971), Western ranchers killed great numbers as nuisances. In 2004, Senator Conrad Burns (Montana) was able to attach a rider to a much larger bill that effectively gutted the 1971 act. Today many environmental, humane, and historical organizations are campaigning for a restoration of full protection for American wild horses.

In Canada few, if any, wild horses are true mustangs. Most are a mixture of feral English breeds including Suffield, Shire, and Clydesdales. Most are located in Alberta. Attempts to reduce or eliminate them have been opposed by numerous animal rights groups or individuals. Australia also has wild or feral horses that are called Brumby horses. By the early 1800s, there were a number of them in the mountains of eastern Australia, and today they also live in the west and other areas of Australia.

Wild horses on the barrier islands of Chesapeake Bay and of North Carolina's Outer Banks were probably originally from Spanish galleons. Others were strays that went feral. In North Carolina the barrier island of Corolla has become home for a few wild horses. The Corolla Wild Horse Fund was formed in 1989 and works to protect them. In Maryland, Assateague Island has a wild horse population that is separated from Virginia's by fences. Because of poor diet in the salt marshes they are about the size of ponies. The same is true for the wild horses of Chincoteague Island (Virginia) National Wildlife Refuge. Both Assateague and Chincoteague Islands have roundups to manage the population.

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