These Horses Are Wild!

release dates: August 14-20

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© 2010 Universal Uclick

Symbols of American Spirit

from The Mini Page © 2010 Universal Uclick

These Horses Are Wild!

photo by S. Nystrom, courtesy National Park Service

   Have you ever ridden or petted a horse? The friendly, helpful animals we use to pull wagons and march in parades are called domesticated horses. Along with their cousins, feral (FAIR-uhl) horses, they have a long history in the Americas.    This week, The Mini Page talked with experts to learn more about wild horses.

The first horses    Millions of years ago, a small fourlegged animal called Hyracotherium (HY-rak-ah-THEER-ee-um) lived in North America. It grew only about 8 inches high, and it had four toes on its front feet, each with its own hoof.

Hyracotherium, the first horse, became extinct about 45 million years ago.

   Other types of horses evolved with changing predators and climate. The ancestor of the horses we know, Equus (EHK-wuhs), lived on our continent about 5 million years ago.

Thank the Spaniards    Experts think Equus may have moved to Asia and Europe by crossing a land bridge in the Bering Strait*. For a long while, there were no horses at all in North America.    Just about 500 years ago, Spanish explorers brought horses back to the Americas. These horses had been domesticated, but some escaped and began to live in the wild. They were the ancestors of today’s feral horses. *The Bering Strait is a small sea passage between Alaska and Russia. Archaeologists believe the two continents were connected before the last Ice Age.

This newborn foal and a yearling foal stay close to their Nokota mother. They live in the Theodore Roosevelt National Park in North Dakota. The “wild” horses found in the western states are really feral horses. People sometimes use either word to mean the same type of horse. They’re also called mustangs.

Horse talk Meanings of some “horsey” words

   Feral — describes animals (or their ancestors) that were once domesticated, or tame, but are now wild    Mustang — from the Spanish word mesteno, which means feral    Stallion — a full-grown male horse    Mare — a full-grown female horse    Filly — a young female horse    Colt — a young male horse    Foal — any young horse    Burro — a donkey

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33-2 (10); release dates: August 14-20 from The Mini Page © 2010 Universal Uclick

Wild Around the World Color in states where feral horses are found. • Arizona • California • Colorado • Georgia • Idaho • Maryland • Montana • Nevada • New Mexico • North Carolina • North Dakota • South Dakota • Oregon • Utah • Virginia • Wyoming

The only ‘wild’ horse

Horsing around the USA

Looking out for horses

   Most of the feral horses in the West are found in Nevada. These are the horses we call mustangs.    In the East, Chincoteague ponies live on Assateague Island off the coast of Virginia and Maryland. Banker horses live on the Outer Banks of North Carolina. Because these horses are surrounded by salt water, they’ll sometimes dig holes to reach fresh water for drinking.

   Some of the feral horse herds are privately owned, such as the Chincoteague ponies. Others are protected by the National Park Service or state government agencies where they live.

Wild burros

Today, only about 300 of these special horses live in the wild. They are considered critically endangered. However, wildlife refuges and zoos around the world continue to house and breed the Przewalski horse.

   Burros live mostly separate from the horse herds. Arizona has the largest population of feral burros.

from The Mini Page © 2010 Universal Uclick

Ready Resources The Mini Page provides ideas for websites, books or other resources that will help you learn more about this week’s topics. On the Web: • www.blm.gov • www.nwf.org/Kids/Ranger-Rick/Animals/Mammals/ Wild-Ponies.aspx At the library: • “Face to Face With Wild Horses” by Yva Momatiuk and John Eastcott • “The Horse: Faster Than the Wind” by Valerie Tracqui

photo courtesy The Wilds Wildlife Preserve

   Although we use the word “wild” to describe feral horses, there is really only one wild horse left in the world.    The Przewalski (shuh-VAL-skee) horse in east-central Asia has never been domesticated. In fact, this species almost became extinct in the 1960s. Zoos and wildlife sanctuaries around the world, including the San Diego Zoo, have worked together to keep breeding the Przewalski horse.

from The Mini Page © 2010 Universal Uclick

Brown Bassetews try ’n The N d’s find Houn Words that remind us of wild horses are hidden in the block below. Some words are hidden backward or diagonally, and some letters are used twice. See if you can find: ADOPT, AMERICA, BURRO, DOMESTICATED, EQUUS, EXTINCT, FERAL, GATHER, HEALTHY, HERD, HORSE, HYRACOTHERIUM, MANAGE, MUSTANG, PONY, PRZEWALSKI, SPIRIT, SYMBOL, WILD, ZOOS. TM

Have you ever ridden a horse?

Wild Horses

D S Y M B O L I R

E O N H H S M K X

T O O N P A F S M

A Z P I N Q G L U

C W R A S N A A I

I I G U A R M W R

T E U T E E I E E

S Q S F R L X Z H

E U H I D T B R T

M G C E I U V P O

O A A N R H O D C

D U C R J D S K A

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J T O G A T H E R

V K H E A L T H Y

L M N R E S R O H

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33-3 (10); release dates: August 14-20

Mini Spy . . .

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Mini Spy and Basset Brown are on a trail ride to locate some wild horses. See if you can find: • number 3 • bird • angelfish • snake • rolling pin • lips • banana • bell • tooth • safety pin • shark • word MINI • dragon • question mark

Rookie Cookie’s Recipe

Salmon and Pasta Salad You’ll need: • 8 ounces elbow macaroni, cooked and drained • 2 ripe tomatoes, chopped • 2 medium dill pickles, diced • 2 (5-ounce) cans salmon, drained and chopped • 1/2 cup reduced-fat mayonnaise • salt and pepper to taste What to do: 1. Allow cooked pasta to reach room temperature. 2. Combine pasta with tomatoes, pickles, salmon and mayonnaise. 3. Add salt and pepper to taste. Mix well. 4. Chill 1 hour before serving. You will need an adult’s help with this recipe. from The Mini Page © 2010 Universal Uclick

Meet Leon Thomas III photo by Lisa Rose/Nickelodeon © 2009 Viacom International Inc.

   Leon Thomas III plays Andre in the Nickelodeon TV series “Victorious.” When he was 8, he became the singing voice of Tyrone, the orange moose, in the preschool TV series “The Backyardigans.”    Leon appeared as the young Simba in the Broadway musical “The Lion King” when he was 10. He has acted in other plays too.    He later appeared in TEENick’s “Just for Kicks,” as well as in several other TV series. He also starred in the movie “August Rush.”    His parents are professional musicians who also owned a recording studio. His mother taught him the guitar for his role in “August Rush.”    Leon, 17, also plays the drums, bass, piano and saxophone, writes songs and dances. from The Mini Page © 2010 Universal Uclick

from The Mini Page © 2010 Universal Uclick

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state is collected here in a 156-page softcover book. Conveniently spiral-bound for ease of use, this invaluable resource contains A-to-Z facts about each state, along with the District of Columbia. Illustrated with colorful photographs and art, and complete with updated information, The Mini Page Book of States will be a favorite in classrooms and homes for years to come. To order, send $15.99 ($19.99 Canada) plus $5 postage and handling for each copy. Make check or money order (U.S. funds only) payable to Universal Uclick. Send to The Mini Page Book of States, Universal Uclick, P.O. Box 6814, Leawood, KS 66206. Or call toll-free 800-591-2097 or go to www.smartwarehousing.com. Please send ______ copies of The Mini Page Book of States (Item #0-7407-8549-4) at $20.99 each, total cost. (Bulk discount information available upon request.) Name: _____________________________________________ Address: ____________________________________________ City: ______________________________________________ State: __________________________ Zip: ________________

from The Mini Page © 2010 Universal Uclick

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All the following jokes have something in common. Can you guess the common theme or category? Harold: What kind of horse does a ghost like to ride? Harriet: Nightmares! Horace: Why is it hard to identify horses from the back? Henry: Because they keep switching their tails! Hillary: Why did the horse scold its colt? Harry: He was misbehooving!

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33-4 (10); release dates: August 14-20

Caring for Horses

from The Mini Page © 2010 Universal Uclick

   About 40 years ago, the U.S. Congress decided that feral horses were an important symbol of the American spirit. It gave the job of watching over many of them to the Bureau of Land Management, or BLM.    Today, the BLM manages 33,700 horses and 4,700 burros in 10 western states. The animals are divided into 179 herd management areas.    The herds can be hard on rangelands. They eat grass and other plants. They can cause erosion, or wearing away, of the soil. Biologists, conservationists and other scientists A new life study the rangeland to see what    After horses are removed, the BLM effect the horses are having on it. gets them ready for adoption. About 3,500 horses, or 10 percent of all feral Too many horses? horses on BLM lands, are adopted    The BLM is in charge of counting each year. They go the feral horses on public lands. to individuals and They do this by taking surveys from to agencies such airplanes and by counting horses on as the U.S. Border the ground. Experts say most herds Patrol, where grow by 20 percent in a year. When the BLM decides that there they’re used to help agents watch are too many horses or burros living our borders with in an area, it may do a “gather.” Canada and Animals are rounded up, and some This Border Patrol Mexico, and to are removed from the herd. officer at Glacier police forces. National Park in Montana rides an    Some have adopted feral horse. become part of the Caisson Platoon at Arlington National Cemetery, where they pull flag-draped caskets to their final resting places.

photos courtesy Bureau of Land Management

A big job

These mustangs run on rangeland in Utah. Wild horses have very few natural predators, or animals that hunt them. Gathering and removing some of the horses is a way for officials to control their effect on the land.

Training and health    Experts say feral horses are intelligent and curious, qualities that trainers like.    Because of their rugged lifestyle, the horses are tough and strong. Their feet are sturdier than domesticated horses’, so they are sure-footed.    Most of the wild horses available for adoption have not yet been “gentled,” or trained. But some are trained by inmates in special prison programs.

After adoption    An adopted horse becomes the property of the new owner after a year if the BLM finds that it is well cared for. Horses that can’t be adopted because of age or other problems may be sold or sent to live in pastures in the Midwest.

The Mini Page thanks Tom Gorey and Sally Spencer of the Bureau of Land Management Wild Horse and Burro Program for help with this issue.

The Mini Page Staff Betty Debnam - Founding Editor and Editor at Large   Lisa Tarry - Managing Editor   Lucy Lien - Associate Editor   Wendy Daley - Artist Please include all of the appropriate registered trademark symbols and copyright lines in any publication of The Mini Page®.