Horse Breeds
Sublime Passions: Delacroix’s Horses
July 2018
I first saw Horses Coming out of the Sea when I was two or three years old, and I hold it entirely responsible for my love of both horses and art. It featured in my first picture-books, the ground-breaking ‘Masters of Colour’ part-work series, published by Fabbri in the mid-1960’s in affordable weekly editions, each with 16 superbly-printed colour plates. My mother, keen to bring culture, or at least distraction, to my baby sister and me, eagerly subscribed to it at the local newsagent.
In Search of Europe’s Wild Horses
July 2018
It is dusk. We have made camp in a sloping meadow at the end of a spur, tucked between hills and tree-filled valleys. The last of the light burnishes the long grass in gold. Our day has been spent clinging to the interior of an intrepid 4WD as it negotiated the full range of its capabilities, hiking across a plateau, swapping between binoculars and long camera lenses. We have come to Bulgaria in search of the new wild horses of Europe and with the help of Hristo Hristov, Rewilding Rhodopes’ horse project officer, we have been delivered straight to them on Day One.
Mules: Part 2
June 2018
Last month, I explained the origins of donkeys, mules and horses, and the unique differences in their intelligence, appearance, diet and disposition. In case you missed it, you can read it here. This month, I continue my discussion on the distinctive adaptations of today’s donkey, mule and horse.
Mules: Part 1
May 2018
I wanted to write a nice article on mules, explaining them to those who know horses. There is plenty of conventional wisdom on the subject, but on closer examination, it all seems to be the same and distil down to not much. There is minimal science at all comparing donkeys, mules and horses, and many of the topics covered here deserve better than they have been given.
The Annual Round Up of Spain's Marsh Mares
October 2017
Image source: www.abc-sevilla.es The Doñana National Park in Huelva province in southern Spain is one of Europe’s most important wetland areas. Listed as a UNESCO world heritage site in 1994, it is a haven for fauna, such as the Imperial Eagle and the Pardel Lynx.
Small Horses, Big Dreams
October 2017
Six thirty in the morning. The sun is rising over the Greek village of Magazia; the Aegean Sea laps at the shore beside whitewashed buildings. Hooves pound the sand as a bay horse streaks past with a rider on board.
Horsing Around the World: Iceland
July 2017
Two days before Christmas last year, my husband surprised me by asking whether I wanted to go on a trip to Lapland to see the Northern Lights. Of course, I responded with “sure!”. The next couple of weeks were spent trying to work out the best time to view the Aurora Borealis that fitted with work commitments and where we wanted to go. Although not in Lapland, Iceland was considered a must and my non-horsey husband soon realised this meant we had to see Icelandic horses!
The Moyle Horse of Idaho
March 2017
I started on the quest to find out about horses possessing ‘horns’; more accurately, frontal skull bosses (small bony bumps covered by skin and hair that occur on the forehead) after reading the following sentence in a 2007 article by Beverly Davis11: “Bucephalus means ‘ox-head’ and it is possible the name might come from the calcium ‘horns’ that are found on the foreheads of horses descended from the Persian.” My research led me to the Moyle horse, a rare breed which was known to regularly exhibit these frontal skull bosses...
The Moyle Horse of Idaho
March 2017
I started on the quest to find out about horses possessing ‘horns’; more accurately, frontal skull bosses (small bony bumps covered by skin and hair that occur on the forehead) after reading the following sentence in a 2007 article by Beverly Davis11: “Bucephalus means ‘ox-head’ and it is possible the name might come from the calcium ‘horns’ that are found on the foreheads of horses descended from the Persian.” My research led me to the Moyle horse, a rare breed which was known to regularly exhibit these frontal skull bosses...
Fresh Starts in Focus
February 2017
After a two-year absence, Equitana returned to Melbourne over four days in November last year. A celebration of all things equine, Equitana always has a great program of educational and competitive events but, in 2016, it wasn’t just the Grand Prix level competitions drawing the crowds. Every day was jam-packed with education, competition and showcases that focused on two groups of horses in particular: Australian brumbies and ex-racehorses. Off the track and into the spotlight
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