Exmoor-Pony

Exmoor ponies in winter fur

The Exmoor Pony is a medium-sized English pony breed. It is the most original and wildpferdartigste the British small horses, some herds wander still free in the moors of England South West (eg Exmoor National Park, a Wild Stud ). Assertions, Exmoor ponies have a seventh molar, which does not exist in other breeds of horses are based on a misinterpretation.

Background information on the evaluation and breeding horses can be found at: exterior, interior and horse breeding.

Exterior

The Exmoorpferd is due to its phenotype of some special proximity to the European wild horse awarded The Exmoor Pony has a stocky, strong physique. The coat color of Exmoor is black brown, which can range in shades of beige - brown to dark brown - black. Most Exmoorpferde, however, are reddish-brown or hazel. Brown is a proven for the European wild horse coat color. Would be relevant to whether the European wild horses is fawn gene, which has been genetically not been identified, had or not. The Falbgen results in brown ground color a sand-colored clay like the Przewalski's Horse, with a black base color is a mousy color similar to that of the Konik. Consequently, both brown, black, sand-colored and mouse-gray colors could have occurred in the European wild horse. Exmoor horses do not have the lightening fawn gene. A lack of Falbgens on the Western European Exmoorpferd could be understood as an adaptation to woody terrain in Central and Western Europe, which might have favored a darker color. The Exmoor horse also has, as all current wild horse representative, the Pangare gene, which causes a light underside and a white flour mouth. The legs are very dark to the toes back, also is a fine dorsal stripe often present.

The Exmoorpferd is particularly tough as horse Robust and resistant to many horse diseases. The winter coat of Exmoor ponies made ​​of a soft woolly undercoat and a longer, oily, water- repellent outer coat. As a further adjustment to the weather conditions of the UK climate existing in some original ponies bulging eyes, protect your eyes from rain water and snow apply.

Interior

The Exmoor Pony is tough, robust and healthy. Even if it sometimes shows its originality, it is generally the man set against friendly and attentive and willing to deal with. Exmoor ponies are, in contrast to many other breeds in extensive aquaculture, timid and avoid people .. Others, such Koniks are, even if they have spent their whole lives on natural surfaces, very trusting, which can lead to conflicts with people. Also show Exmoorponies to escape a strong herd instinct and sometimes form a defensive ring around the foals when they feel threatened, while dispel Konik.

History

Already in the Pleistocene were wild horses to people in the UK as food. Their remains are common in glacial sites. It is uncertain whether wild horses disappeared during the Mesolithic from the UK and only came back to the island as, domestic horses, or whether they survived throughout.

Genetic studies contradict the view while Exmoorpony it were a surviving form of the wild horses in Britain. They share mDNA with various other horse species, and their Y chromosome is identical to that of most other domestic horses.

But may be taken as certain that the Exmoor pony is the only poorly crossed population of a wild horse type that was once widespread throughout the UK and at least until the year 1086, the time of William the Conqueror, is traceable, so the Exmoorpony herds as the traceable longest wild horse populations of Europe apply.

These horses were in historical times as shy and were hunted. Their meat was an important livelihood for many residents dar. was typical a small withers of 130 cm no border, strong physique with muscular- head and a short bushy mane. The staining was predominantly dark brown or black, with a light body bottom and a flour mouth.

These native horses were visibly not only hunted, but tamed and bred by farmers. Due to their powerful figure they were proven draft animals. During the 19th and 20th centuries they have been in many places crossed with horses from the mainland, which led to a loss of the original appearance of many local pony breeds. By 1900, showed local British horse races still strong resemblance to each other. So then ponies from North Wales, the Hebrides, Welsh ponies, the Dartmoor Pony and the now extinct Galloway pony were (from the Fell Pony was born) from today Exmoorpony virtually indistinguishable. Even horses of the Faroe Islands date back to those ponies. Genetic findings imply a North Pony group, the more northern pony breeds such as the Shetland pony and the Fjord horse belonging, which also indicates a common origin.

Only in Exmoor there was very little mixing, so that there the original wild type of horse could get. Crossings with other breeds, V.A. the Thoroughbred, were indeed carried out, but since their results coped usually much worse with the harsh winters, often abandoned. Accordingly, the influence of other breeds in Exmoorpony remained low. This is witnessed by, among others, yet the striking homogeneity of the race.

The breed was during World War numerically sharply. Around 50 Exmoor ponies survived, including only six stallions. This genetic bottleneck is held responsible for a significant loss of genetic diversity within the Exmoor ponies. So there used to be a black version. Historically detected are also white- grayish Exmoor ponies with dark legs, which probably go back to mixing with other races.

In 1921, the Exmoor Pony Society was founded with the goal to get the pure-bred Exmoor Pony. 2010, the global stock of Exmoor ponies was estimated at about 800 animals. Some populations live wild or semi- wild, 12 herds of those in Exmoor.

Use

The Exmoor Pony is strong enough to carry a full-grown man, but is primarily used as a pony. Use is this original horse in nature. Since the grazing impact of large herbivores contributes to the preservation of open space with its biodiversity ( Megaherbivorenhypothese ) are robust animals like the Exmoorpferd among others by the Association of Biological Environment ( ABU ) or the Stichting Taurus used semi- wild state. Also the Exmoor is proposed to replace the extinct European wild horse in the wilderness.