Scientists Just Found Out What Wild Horses Actually Are

Cowboys used to tell of a white stallion, straight from the conquistadors, that no rider could ever catch. For generations, the West believed its wild horses were living relics of Spanish ships. Then a geneticist spent twenty years collecting hair and blood from more than 8,500 wild horses in 235 herds across ten states. And in Wyoming, the bones of one small foal were waiting to prove the history books wrong. Retired field biologist Vern Hale walks through what the DNA really says about America's wild horses, from the Pryor Mountains on the Montana-Wyoming line to a frozen scoop of Yukon mud, and why a mixed family tree may be the most American thing about them. THE LEGEND VS. THE LAB The legend: wild horses are pure Spanish horses, untouched since the 1500s. The lab: herd after herd came back widely mixed. The legend: the famous Spanish-looking herds must be the real thing. The lab: even the Kiger, Sulphur and Pryor horses told a more complicated story. The legend: horses reached the Plains after the Pueblo Revolt of 1680. The bones: a foal was born and raised in Wyoming around 1650. The legend: horses vanished from America at the end of the Ice Age. The frozen ground: traces of horses lingered thousands of years longer than the textbooks said. The legend: wild horses have always run free. The record: they were hunted from planes and trucks until one Nevada woman, Wild Horse Annie, fought back. Growing up, what did the grown-ups tell you about where wild horses came from? Vern's own field stories are told for illustration. The studies, horses, places and numbers he cites are real. #wildhorses #mustangs #wildlife