Wild Horses

Wild horses, managed by the Bureau of Land Management, live around Green Mountain which is located on the opposite side of the highway. You many see bands of wild horses roaming public land on the south side of the road. , Wild horses are distant cousins of mustangs brought here by Spanish explores. Over the years, some of the Spanish mustangs escaped and formed herds of wild horses that roamed the old west. , As Native Americans learned how to capture and use wild horses, their way of life changed dramatically. Horses came to symbolize both increased mobility and wealth to the plains (sic) Indian. , Horses also played an important role in westward expansion. Emigrants, cowboys, the military and freighters, to name a few, depended on horses for transportation. This made wild horses attractive to the Army and others as remounts. , Today's wild horses are mainly descendants of ranch horses which escaped or were turned loose onto the public lands over the years. , Horses have no natural predators. So, it is necessary to manage herd levels so that wildlife, livestock, wild horses, and the rangelands they depend on are not hurt by overpopulation. BLM conducts periodic round-ups to control the number of animals on the public rangelands. , Wild horses are available to the American public through BLM's Adopt-a-Horse program. For more information, contact any BLM office.