Equus ferus, 05 July 2018

Equus ferus, the Wild horse;
Alachua county, Florida (05 July 2018).

If you ever find yourself at Paynes Prairie State Park in Alachua county, Florida, just south of Gainesville, keep your eyes peeled for wild horses roaming about. Yes, there are wild horses roaming free in Paynes Prairie. Heck, there are even bison. The park reintroduced both species to reinvigorate a sense of “natural” Florida to the area. Bison once naturally ranged through much of Florida (before they were annihilated by the invasive Europeans). As for the horses, well, that’s a different, more complicated story.

The horses at Paynes Prairie are supposedly descendants of the horses brought to La Florida by the Spaniards in the 1500s. At that time, horses were new to the region. Sort of. Let me try to explain. Equus ferus actually first evolved in North America a little over a million years ago. Over time, they moved westward into Asia, then Europe and Africa. They also spread south into what is now South America. In other words, the wild horse got around. It was extremely capable in spreading out across much of the planet.

During the Quaternary Extinction Event, however, horses were wiped out from North America, but they persisted in the old world. Over time, of course, people started riding horses… and when the Spaniards headed west to North America, they brought their horses with them. Once again, horses returned to the place they first emerged: North America.

So, next time you’re roam about the Alachua Savanna, in what is now called Paynes Prairie, and come across some wild horses, think of the long, strange journey that brought these horses to the wet marsh before you. Time is deep, friends, and sometimes life makes a circuit loop.