Colonial Spanish Mustangs of Carova (Outer Banks, NC)

This year's trip to the beaches of the Outer Banks was a little different. We usually spend this time on the southern end of the island but this year, we decided to try the northern end - something we haven't done since our two boys were very little. Two entirely different cultures and experiences. While the southern end of the island is a lot less populated with very few grocery stores and commercial build up, it can be very 'rustic' which is nice. The northern end (while it has its charm) is full of quaint little shops and restaurants, grocery stores and well-managed neighborhoods.

Given that it has been 10 years or more since our last visit, it was like experiencing it for the first time all over again. One of the perks of the northern end is Carova where you need a 4 wheel drive in order to enter the town (if you can call it that). It is literally cut off from civilization for miles with small little clusters of houses that are only available to rent a few months out of the year.

The amazing draw for Carova is not only the 'peaceful' experience but the WILD Colonial Spanish Mustangs! They've been on the Outer Banks for hundreds of years and only recently moved to Carova where they are safe and free to roam on thousands of acres of prestine beaches and habitats.

While we did not rent a house in Carova, we did rent a house very close to the beach access point and instead of driving the beach to Carova (yes, you can still drive on some of the beaches on the Outer Banks!), we went with a guided tour guide that lived in Carova. Visualize a make shift 'safari' vehicle out of a pickup truck with metal benches soldered to the flat bed ;)

Anyway....back to the horses!

The Colonial Spanish Mustangs arrived here in the early 1500's by way of the explorers and colonists of the New World. This has been verified through DNA testing for their lineage.

It is no surprise that with such a long history, these horses have played a significant role in the state’s coastal heritage, with thousands of them once roaming the Outer Banks. In fact, residents have long celebrated the horses by erecting statues of them (colorfully painted)from one end of the island to the other.

Due to development, roads and tourism, these once thriving horses have been dwindled down to less than 400 today. In fact, some claim the number is closer to just 100 that have survived. Which is why these guided tours are useful to educate the public about these special breed of horse.

As these horses are 'wild', they are completely on their own and not part of a refuge or sanctuary. Instead, the local residents/community (a handful of families) look out for the horses and will only intervene in very, very special cases. In 2006, the town of Corolla created a non-profit organization called the Corolla Wild Horse Fund which has four full-time and 19 seasonal employees as well as many volunteers to assist in conserving and protecting the horses.

A horse is a horse is a horse....right? No.

What I found interesting is that they have very different digestive systems than our domesticated horses. Which was an important educational fact relayed by our guide. They eat the wild sea grass and the vegetation found in the water canal (man-made and dug out in the 1970's). Anything else, very quickly kills the horse because their digestive tract is not acclimated to other foods. In fact, our guide shared a sad story where one of the horses just died due to being fed 'watermelon'. You would think watermelon would be fine but it is quite deadly to them....as well as apples, carrots and other typical foods people feed domesticated horses.

Another interesting piece of information was the difference between wild horses and domesticated horses in their 'herd culture'. Apparently wild horses are very territorial and have alpha males that will kill a baby or other male horse. This also just happened prior to us visiting the horses. Therefore, the horses tend to create 'tribes' and the females 'harems' keeping separate from the males. There was also a case where the horses attacked a visitor's dog because it was barking.

So, as beautiful as these creatures are, they require observing from a 50 foot distance and respected in their natural habitat.

This was truly one of the highlights of our trip. I felt so privileged to have this experience with my family and I do hope that these horses rebound and thrive for hundreds of years to come. It would be so sad if they didn't survive. Their numbers are dangerously low and it is required that they have at least 120 horses to keep the gene pool viable.

We were also gifted with witnessing the miracle of a new baby horse - a male horse. As you can see from the photos, he did have some wounds from an encounter with an adult male already, but survived.

Knowing that their numbers are so low really gave us a different perspective with each tribe we encountered.

Here are some links if you wish to learn more. I highly recommend viewing the video so you can get an idea of how beautiful they are romping around on the beach.