Kaimanawa Horses - Range Trip Muster

Just a wee 'heads up' re: the Kaimanawa Range Trip that's coming up on 25th of March & the wild horse muster that's coming up May/June as I know a lot of you have been BIG supporters of both in the past. [^]

The Range Trip is a rare opportunity to go places the public aren't usually allowed (Waiouru Army land) to view wild horses in their natural habitat from the comfort of a bus. There are MANY photo & video opportunities (the horses often come right up to the bus!) & frequent stops as horses are sighted, for you to disembark & snap away.

Bring a picnic lunch to enjoy at 'West Lawn' with it's historic hut & many rare native birds & plants. It's a fantastic day out & makes a very unique gift for 'the person who has everything'. It's open to ALL ages & a VERY cheap accommodation package is available for those who are travelling long distances.

2012 Kaimanawa Muster forms are now available for those who are interested in purchasing a Kaimanawa horse from the muster. Applications close 15th of May.

Details for both are on the Kaimanawa Heritage Horses (was Kaimanawa Wild Horse Welfare Trust) website.

We also have another large group (30-40) of Kaimanawa & Kaimanawa x Morgan horses on the East Coast which we are trying to help place. We can possibly get some of these horses brought as far as Hamilton (from Ruatoria) to save transport costs but we need confirmed homes for them to go to. Please help spread the word far & wide!

Yep, the trip is fantastic. Even people who are not into horses will really enjoy the amazing views and topography.
A truly awesome experience

The Range Trip web sign up is having technical difficulties - at least it does if you don't want to take your kids . They know about it and are working on it.
In the meantime you can send your interest (and a cheque I was told) direct to their address which can be found on the membership and registration forms on their website

Can I ask a question without causing a ruckus?

As the Kaimanawa horses aren't native to NZ, nor have they been here for some 300 or so years, nor were they (from what I understand) instrumental in the exploration and expansion of settlement in NZ, why is it so important to keep horses in the Kaimanawa ranges beyond the tourist factor of seeing feral horses?

Diane

The Kaimanawa has been interbred and inbred for so long that it has almost become its own breed, (some will disgree). Much like the arapawa sheep. Just because it is not over 300 years old does not make them any less significant to NZ history.

They are a tourist attraction and if managed,( because NZ has no natural predators to keep the number down) then they can be preserved as a part of NZ's heritage.

I agree with culling to keep the numbers in balance with the environment, and I accept many of the animals will have to be destroyed, I just hope that the herd is not weakened by taking out the best of the animals (they can make nice sure footed sturdy riding ponies/horses)

Why are you surprised? I didn't grow up here, in fact, I've only lived about a 5th of my life here. Is it wrong that I want to try and understand something that is part of my new country?

In other countries where I have lived where there are wild horses, there ARE other reasons beyond being a tourist attraction. So far I haven't really had a good explanation as to why keep them running feral. I know that whenever there has been a call by DOC to remove the horses there is a huge emotional outcry from a very vocal group, but I want reasons that are more 'solid' than just an emotional response. /shrug/

They are a tourist attraction and if managed,( because NZ has no natural predators to keep the number down) then they can be preserved as a part of NZ's heritage.

That's the part that I'm trying to understand/figure out...the mustangs of the Wild West are part of the heritage because many a cowboy and settler captured a mustang to save their lives (i.e., their own horse died and they were stranded in the Nevada desert). The Pony Express tended to use mustangs because they were 'cheap and disposable' as well as hardy and able to run all day where a pampered blooded horse from back east couldn't even begin to cope. In the Middle East, the horse allowed the Bedouin to move from oasis to oasis, by giving the warriors swift transport across the sands to make sure that the next oasis was safe from competing tribes...

That's the sort of 'heritage' connection that I, so far, haven't been able to find with the Kiamanawas (admittedly, it is also something that I've not gone digging thru dusty archives to find).

Diane

We are a new country with a young history.
We dont have to go back 300 years to value something and see it as our heritage here in this country.
There were no land mammals here when the maori arrived so everything is introduced, and all part of our heritage.
Perhaps if you want to be informed appaloosa you could take the trip through the ranges as it is not only a thoroughly visual trip to part of the country that we cannot normally access, but it is also instructive and there are people quite happy to impart their knowledge and views

That's a very valid question NZ Appaloosas & interestingly enough, is probably most often asked by 'horsey' people. Kaimanawas are direct descendants of the first horses introduced to NZ & are the last remnants of herds which once spanned the entire north island. Kaimanawas are also descended from farm & Army horses. They may not be directly responsible ( as a breed) for breaking in NZ farmland, fighting our wars, building our roads, etc but they certainly carry the legacy of these horses in their bloodlines. They've resided where they now for almost 200 years so have earned the title 'historic'. More so probably than many of our buildings which are considered significant & worthy of protecting. They're recognised as a breed which is unique to NZ & now the wild population is down to 300 horses, it's even more important that this is recognised & 'value' is placed on the herd.

Come visit them! DoC reps will be there too & are always happy to answer questions from a conservation perspective.

Muri, I'm not interested in the tourist attraction, I'm interested in the history. The use of mustangs is taught in the US history classes in grade school, the same was not taught here when my daughter was in grade or high school. I really don't understand why you're taking such an attitude...I wouldn't expect you to understand why a big billboard with a defunct oil company has such meaning in Boston Massachusetts unless you were from there...and for the record, the Pony Express was considerably more recent than 300 years ago...

Thank you, GloPony...that's the sort of info I am looking for...knowing full well the damage that feral introduced species can do to native species, the idea of keeping them just because they are a tourist attraction didn't seem right.

Diane

Appalosa, the kaimanawa are not a tourist attraction and never have been and I did not mention that at all.
There is one trip annually organised by a Kaimanawa group in conjunction with the army.
On this trip, you are able to see the animals, learn their history and see both sides of the story from the army's point of view and the horse group's point of view. It is a really good opportunity to learn about them which is why most people do the trip.
There are no tourist buses up into the area at all, you may not realise it is on army land and totally closed to the public, except for this one annual trip that glo pony brought up for peoples information.

NZ Appaloosas, Kaimanawa horses are no threat to plant species anymore. They're now confined within an agreed management zone & numbers have been significantly reduced (from 1700 horses to 300) over the last 15 years.

It's shame there isn't more emphasis on horses' involvement taught in NZ history as it was them & the bullock teams that broke in the land, carted the logs, built the roads, etc. There's also little mention of the thousands of NZ horses which to WW1 & never returned.

Modern NZ owes it's existence to horses & it would be a shame to lose the last remnants of this link to our past. Aside from that, Kaimanawa horses are unique in many ways (both behaviourally & physically) when compared with other feral herds around the world.

As muri pointed out, tourism isn't an option given that these horses live in the heart of an active military training area. This is a trip which we run annually in cooperation with DoC & Army (who provide us with an escort).

One of the best things about this day trip is that not only do you get to play 'tourist' & see wild horses up close & personal, you also learn all about the history of the horses, the area, the geology, flora & fauna from several perspectives; KHH, DoC & Army. It's not often the public gets such a controversial topic presented in such a balanced & holistic way & is able to ask questions of all parties in one place.

There's a really good book called 'NZ Wild Horses' which was written by Harvey Morrow in the '70's. He recounts tales of capturing & breaking in wild horses from all around the central plateau area & across to Hawkes Bay. A lot of it isn't pleasant reading but it's an accurate documentation of some of the horses' history & what they meant to the lives of local people.

I hope you can find a copy & have a read or come on the trip & make your own mind up (from first hand experience rather than hearsay) as to whether or not they're worthy of preserving.

when assessment of nature remember buffalo in usa it must not be close to extinction.

That is very true Lars! The American buffalo are a great reminder to us all as to the importance of all breeds. We're very mindful that with only 300 horses, it would be very easy to lose the breed forever should some illness or similar, spread through the herd.

lars arsbjorn;405725 wrote: when assessment of nature remember buffalo in usa it must not be close to extinction.

Buffalo became a farmed animal, and used for meat crossed over beef, which saved them. Alligator conservation was turned over to the alligator hunters, and they are also farmed for meat and leather. The "gov't conserved" species (large cats, wolves, coyotes, etc.) are becoming problematic and are in parts of the USA where they either never were or hadn't been in thousands of years...

So I'm not quite sure where you're going with this?

Again, GloPony, thanks for the info. As I said, I thought (hoped) there had to be more to it than them being a tourist attraction, just that the info wasn't as easily available as I thought it would be.

Diane