Wild Florida Spanish Horse

Description:

The Florida Cracker Horse, like the cattle breed of the same name, traces its ancestry to Spanish stock brought to Florida in the 1500's when discovered by Spain. The genetic heritage of the Cracker Horse is derived from the Iberian Horse of early sixteenth century Spain and includes blood of the North African Barb, Spanish Sorraia and Spanish Jennet (gaited). Its genetic base is generally the same as that of the Spanish Mustang, Paso Fino, Peruvian Paso, Criolla and other breeds developed from the horses originally introduced by the Spanish into the Caribbean Islands, Cuba and North, Central and South America State Symbols: Designates Florida Cracker Horse as official state horse July 1, 2008 http://www.floridacrackerhorses.com/hist...

Habitat:

These horses are wild at Paines Prairie Florida.

Notes:

http://www.centerforamericasfirsthorse.o... Brought to the New World by Spanish explorers in the 1500's, the small and hardy horses endured centuries of harsh conditions. By the late 1800's the majority of horses were killed after U.S. government attacks on feral and sacred Native American herds. Large, European breeds were introduced into the herds, diluting the Spanish blood. During the mid 1900's the first preservation efforts took place to save what horses were left. Gathered from ranches, reservations, and remote areas of the west, these few pioneering men and woman began breeding their own herds. Approximately 3,000 Colonial Spanish horses exist today. The American Livestock Breeds Conservancy and The Equus Survival Trust have listed this breed status as critically rare. Typically standing 13.2 to 14.3 hands and weighing between 600-900 pounds, they are best known for their endurance, intelligence and versatility. They are proving themselves in the modern horse world in endurance, dressage, jumping, driving and ranching activities. The Colonial Spanish horse is said to be the most colorful breed. solid and roan coloration such as dun, buckskin, grulla, sorrel, grey and black. Patterns such as overo, tobiano, sabino and appaloosa are common. Colonial Spanish Horses are of great historic importance and are one of only a very few genetically unique horse breeds worldwide." Colonial Spanish Horses are of great historic importance in the New World. They descend from horses introduced from Spain during the age of the conquest of the New World. They are a direct remnant of the horses of the Golden Age of Spain and that type is mostly or wholly extinct now in Spain. Our Colonial Spanish horses are therefore a treasure chest of genetic wealth from a time long gone.” Dr. Phillip Sponenberg, DVM, PhD Virginia-Maryland College of Veterinary Medicine, Virginia Tech http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/an216 http://www.centerforamericasfirsthorse.o... http://www.albc-usa.org/cpl/wtchlist.htm... http://www.albc-usa.org/cpl/colonialspan... http://www.horseshowcentral.com/horse_br... the scientific name of the Tarpan Equus ferus changed into the name given by Linnaeus Equus caballus by Wilson and Reeder (1993). Some scientists had criticism on this change of the scientific name of the Tarpan or wild horse. These scientists wanted that there would be made an exception for domesticated animals. Gentry et al. (1996) asked the International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature to use its plenary power to rule that the name for the wild species is not invalid by virtue of being antedated by the name based on the domestic form. The Commission has ruled in favour of the proposal and "conserved the usage of 17 specific names based on wild species, which are pre-dated by or contemporary with those based on domestic forms", confirming Equus ferus for the wild horse (International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature 2003). It has stipulated that ferus is not invalid, but has not specified explicitly what name is to be used for the species by those who consider Equus caballus and Equus ferus to be conspecific (Wilson and Reeder 2005). http://www.petermaas.nl/extinct/speciesi...