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| Scrappy, Scarred Napoleon |
During stops at the Wild Horse Museum and Store, we buy a few fundraising T-shirts for the GrandLoves and then proceed to catch up with the locals as to how the herd is doing... 100 dollars worth of merchandise for 500 dollars worth of conversation is quite the bargain. We were enthusiastically told that there are currently 119 wild horses; 1 foal has been born, with 6 more expected quite soon, if all goes well. But then, we heard a tragic story.
I digress to say that we never visit the OBX in season. Rumor has it that it's a zoo, and we don't really want to know what a favorite beach looks like when there is heavy traffic. I shudder... and rightfully so, it seems...
During last Memorial Day weekend, summertime's first hurrah in the OBX, an out-of-control driver crashed into Two Sox, a very popular stallion. He was not with his band of mares, at the time, and died on the beach. Caring locals quickly removed him from the sand, not realizing that the other equines in his little family would search for him for many days... 10, to be exact.
How sad. How infuriating. Did this jerk not see a 1,000-pound Spanish Mustang in front of his car?
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| "What's goin' on over there?" |
It's tough enough to survive the elements, for the horses. Consider the band we witnessed, today. There was a small, scrappy, scarred male amongst far larger mares. We don't know what his official name might be, but we dubbed him "Napoleon". He had quite the time controlling one feisty woman, as she turned and began to head in a different direction. From behind another mare, he reared up, bared his teeth, gave a swing with his head and thus managed to get his way, winning this particular battle. Peace was restored, but I'm not sure what tomorrow shall bring with a women's libber in the herd. We kept our distance, but NIK was armed with my super-duper lens.
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| Redirected |
There is plenty of room on the barrier island to share space with its incredible wildlife. Aretha said it best...
R.E.S.P.E.C.T.
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| Women's Libber |
