![]() ![]() I feel very torn about places like these. ![]() These horses may be corralled and no longer be able to freely roam the island if visitors continue to violate the well-posted park rules. So, even if the beach is beautiful and wild (and not littered! I could not find one piece of trash on it!!), we won’t be back. (excerpt from here ).Īnd it has to stay that way. ![]() Regardless, today the horses are wild and, for the most part, left to fend for themselves. Another theory is that during colonial times, residents on the mainland brought horses to graze on the island to avoid taxation on animals living on the mainland. Domesticated horses could have swam ashore from sinking ships or could have been thrown off of ships that had run aground in an attempt to lighten and refloat the ship. Though nobody knows for sure how they got there, it is certain that they were not originally wild. Horses have been on Assateague Island for over 300 years. Unfortunately, people are not scared of horses like they are of bears, so they just leave food outside unattended even if this is a very clear rule. Like bears, if the horses get used to humans feeding them, they will tear into the tents to get food, raid picnic tables, and even push people out of the way to get to the food sources. One died last year after being fed commercial dog food… Many get hit by cars because they associate vehicles with food. Of course they behave like this because people feed them to take pictures with them or try to pet them. They reminded me more of giant raccoons than the Camargue horses of the animal channel of my youth… Updates about NPS operations will be posted on know I might be a hopeless romantic, but when I hear « camping on an island where wild horses roam free », I have images of the white Camargue horses galloping free in harmony on the beach… Maybe that’s why I was surprised to see pissed off horses stealing bags of chips from campsites and being aggressive with dogs and people. Please visit the Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge website for updated information on the Virginia DIstrict. Currently parking lot #1 and the Virginia OSV zones are open. We will notify the public when we resume full operations and provide updates on our website and Facebook, Twitter and Instagram the Virginia District, the Toms Cove Visitor Center parking lots #2, 3 & 4 and the boardwalk leading from Toms Cove Visitor Center to parking lot #2 are CLOSED. ![]() The National Park Service (NPS) is working servicewide with federal, state, and local authorities to closely monitor the COVID-19 pandemic.Įffective March 28, 2020, Assateague Island National Seashore (Maryland District) will be CLOSED to all park visitors until further notice. The health and safety of our visitors, employees, volunteers, and partners is our number one priority. Assateague Island National Seashore is announcing additional modifications to operations in response to guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, NPS Office of Public Health, US Public Health Service and the Worcester County, Maryland Health Department. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |