Forest Tarpan by Ghirin

Forest Tarpan

Author: Ghirin

The tarpan (Equus caballus gmelini) was the wild horse of Europe and western Asia. There were two basic types: forest and steppe. The forest tarpan was a bit smaller than its steppe counterpart and darker in color. The tarpan is believed to the ancestor of modern light horse breeds.

The forest tarpan lived in most of Europe, dwelling in the forested areas. It became extinct as farmers converted its habitat to farmland and killed tarpans because tarpan stallions would steal domesticated mares for the wild herds. The original wild tarpan died out in the late 1800s.

Two attempts have been made to reconstruct the tarpan from animals of mixed tarpan and domestic background. In Poland, the government has established a feral herd of horses descended from mixed stock in the forest preserve of Bialowieza. With each generation, this herd seems to display more tarpan-like characteristics. The second attempt was by German zoologists. They used primitive breeds of European horses to produce a tarpan-like horse.

The classic features of the forest tarpan include a mouse-dun color with a black stripe down the center of the back and dark legs, semi-erect mane, large head with massive jaws, a thick neck, and tough hooves that do not need to be shod.

Created by Ghirin 2003

Updated 2010-11-03

Just to save space with less in zip and smaller image.

Nothing new