Despite their physical resemblance to pigs and other terrestrial even-toed ungulates, the closest living relatives of the Hippopotamidae are cetaceans ( whales, dolphins, porpoises, etc.), from which they diverged about 55 million years ago. The name comes from the ancient Greek for "river horse" ( ἱπποπόταμος).Īfter the elephant and rhinoceros, the hippopotamus is the third- largest type of land mammal and is the heaviest extant artiodactyl (in the traditional, non-cladistic sense of the term, excluding cetaceans). It is one of only two extant species in the family Hippopotamidae, the other being the pygmy hippopotamus ( Choeropsis liberiensis or Hexaprotodon liberiensis). The hippopotamus ( / ˌ h ɪ p ə ˈ p ɒ t ə m ə s/ HIP-ə- POT-ə-məs Hippopotamus amphibius), also called the hippo, common hippopotamus or river hippopotamus, is a large, mostly herbivorous, semiaquatic mammal and ungulate native to sub-Saharan Africa. Historic range is in red while current range is in green. If prolonged, it leads to poor rangeland and an overall decline in the health of the wild horses.Range map of the hippopotamus. When populations of wildlife, wild horses, and domestic livestock exceed the capabilities of their habitat, the environment begins to suffer. This rate of increase is generally about 20% per year, with good years topping 40%. As a result, populations can increase at a very high rate. Wild horses have no true natural predators other than an occasional mountain lion. The horses are gathered at various times throughout the year. As a result there are fewer cases of injury or death from starvation, dehydration, and susceptibility to the elements. The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) conducts a periodic census of the wild horses to determine how many animals must be removed from the range. The existence of the herds of wild horses is a credit to the private landowners of this area who do not fence their land, thus allowing the horses to wander as necessary for food, water, and shelter in the winter as nature provides. Federal and private lands form a checkerboard pattern in the Rock Springs District. 2,500 of these horses are in the Rock Springs District. The appropriate management level for wild horses in Wyoming is approximately 6,000. The Rock Springs BLM is the headquarters of the Wild Horse Program in Wyoming. Most wild horses in Wyoming are located in the southwestern quarter of the state. In addition to the wild horses in these locations, visitors have a chance to see an abundance of wildlife and take in some of the best scenic vistas in Wyoming. The Pilot Butte Wild Horse Scenic Loop Tour is something you and your family will never forget.Įnjoy a real wild mustang horse tour at the Wind River Wild Horse Sanctuary where you’ll learn about Native American horse culture at the visitor center’s interpretative display. Bighorn sheep, mule deer, coyotes, and other birds and animals can also be seen in this area.Įxperience the wild horses on the Pilot Butte Wild Horse Scenic Loop Tour. The three easiest places to view wild horses are in the Pryor Mountains, outside of Lovell, in southwest Wyoming near Rock Springs, and the Wild Horse Sanctuary located on the Wind River Indian Reservation.Īt the Pryor Mountain Wild Mustang Center, you can learn more about the horses in the museum, as well as their current location, before driving out to find the herd. They were not seen again for another 9,000 years when the Spanish reintroduced them in the 1500’s.Ĭurrent herds are descendants of those Spanish horses along with animals turned out by ranchers or enticed away from ranches by wild horse herds. Horses were first seen in this country about 10,000 years ago, but for unknown reasons became extinct. Wild horses have always been symbols of the West, living examples of a wide-open landscape and an untamed frontier spirit.
0 kommentar(er)
