04/23/07 Wild Horses Renew Habitat

Throughout the history of our West wild horses have received more than their share of blame for rangeland destruction. As someone who has crawled on her belly though sagebrush and spied through the juniper to get close ups of wild Kiger mustangs in Owyhee, it was a pleasant surprise to learn that in other parts of the world wild horses are regarded as a valuable tools for habitat renewal . In Canterbury England for example tough little Koniks imported from Poland and bred to be genetically similar to the tarpans that once roamed over the British Isles and were hunted to extinction at the turn of the 20th century, are quite the wetland restorers. In what the Environmental News Network has deemed an "intriguing ecological exercise that could revitalize the countryside," grazing is restoring balance and now wildfowl like egrets are beginning to return to nest in the area. Sadly grazing, whether it be cattle or horses, seems to be a dirty word for US environmentalists.So when it comes to restoring wetlands and prairies it appears that the pasture is greener&.. on the other side of the ocean.