Colonial Spanish horse
Descended from Iberian and Barb stock brought to the Americas.
The Colonial Spanish horse classification covers breeds and feral herds tracing back to Iberian stock imported from Spain to the Americas. Its ancestors mixed Iberian horses with North African Barbs. Overall, the type is threatened, with seven distinct strains officially recognized.
Quick Facts
- Features
- Small size
- Spanish type
- blood markers indicating origins in the Iberian Peninsula
Facts from the source article.
Characteristics
Colonial Spanish horses are generally small, with weight varying from around 700 to 800 lb. Their heads range from long and finely made to shorter and deeper, with straight to concave foreheads and a straight or slightly convex nose. The muzzle is fine, the upper lip longer than the lower, and nostrils are small and crescent shaped. The chest is narrow but deep, with front legs joining in an A shape. Withers are sharp, the croup sloped, and the tail set low. The hip muscling tapers upward, making the backbone the highest point. Hooves are small and upright.
History in the Americas
Horses returned to the Americas with Columbus on his second voyage in 1493, imported from Spain to the West Indies. Domesticated horses reached the mainland with Cortés in 1519, and by 1525 a breeding nucleus existed in Mexico. Horses arrived in South America from 1531 and in Florida by 1538. By 1553, an estimated 10,000 free-roaming horses were in Mexico.
Modern horses
Many gaited and stock horse breeds in the United States descend from Spanish horses, but only a few bloodlines are considered near-pure descendants of original Spanish stock. The Livestock Conservancy lists Colonial Spanish horse as one breed but also calls it a group of closely related breeds. Various bloodlines are registered by different associations. Genetic analysis indicates many free-ranging Great Basin horses descend from later draft, cavalry, and saddle horses, not Spanish stock. Blood typing, phenotype, and historical documentation have confirmed significant Spanish ancestry in a few BLM-managed herds. A 1985 BLM grant to UC Davis for a three-year study found little Spanish genetics in Great Basin horses, but Gus Cothran later found Spanish markers in Pryor Mountain, Cerbat, and Sulphur Springs herds. Some horses of Spanish phenotype may lack expected Iberian blood markers, while some lacking Spanish type may carry them. Colonial Spanish horse strains include Abaco Barb (extinct since 2015), Banker horse, Carolina Marsh Tacky, Florida Cracker Horse, Baca-Chica, Belsky horse, Havapai, Spanish Mustang, Santa Cruz Island horse, and Wilbur-Cruce Mission horse. Mustang populations considered Colonial Spanish strains include Kiger, Pryor Mountain, Sulphur Springs, Cerbat, and tribal horses.
More in Conservation Priority Breeds of the Livestock Conservancy
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