Przewalski’s Horse – True Wild Mongolian Equine

Przewalski’s Horse – True Wild Mongolian Equine

 horse face

 

Often referred to as the Asian wild horse, Mongolian wild horse, tarpan, Mongolian tarpan, or Dzungarian horse, Przewalski’s horse is considered to be the only remaining truly wild horse in the world. The proud horse has never been domesticated and roams the Central Asian plains, whereas other “wild” horses exist in their current state as a result of domesticated horses escaping and then mating in the wild. There are other wild species in the equine family however, such as donkeys and zebras.

 

horse walking

 

Przewalski’s horse has a stockier build than the domestice horse, but also has shorter legs, giving it a height of only 52 inches (132 centimeters). It also has a length of about 6 foot 11 inches (2.1 meters) and a weight of 660 pounds (300 kilograms).

In the wild, these horses can be found in groups that consist of a dominant stallion, a dominant mare, other mares and all of their offspring. They live in a home range that’s around 6 miles (9.7 kilometers) in radius. These territorries often overlap, as the stallions are only protective of their mares and not their land. Stallions use scent markings to warn each other against intruding on mare relationships, creating dung piles and urinating in the same spots as their females.

 

stallions fighting

 

Przewalski’s horse is an endangered species with only 300 wild and 1,200 captive specimens. There are conservation efforts underway in Mongolia and Hungary.

 

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