Feral Horse Demography: A Preliminary Report
Wolfe ML. 1980. Feral Horse Demography: A Preliminary Report. Journal of Range Management. 33(5):354-360
In this paper, the demographic characteristics of 18 feral horse populations in Oregon, Nevada, Utah, Colorado and Wyoming are discussed. Foals comprised an average of 19 percent of the populations analyzed. The study attempted to estimate survival rates within the populations. Annual rates of increase as predicted from simulation runs were considerably lower than those "observed" from aerial inventories in successive years. Possible reasons for the discrepancies and management implications are discussed. The paper includes data on implied growth rates, relative age composition, sex and age distribution of animals removed during reduction operations, estimated first-year survival rates, implied adult survival rates and hypothetical feral horse populations derived from computer simulation studies.
- Type
- Journal Article
- Authors
- Wolfe, Michael
- Units
- MOJA
- Keywords
- Equidae (Horses), Equus caballus (Horse), Mammalia (Mammals), Perissodactyla (Uneven-Toed Ungulates), Populations, Rates of increase, Relative age composition, Reproduction, Survival Rates