Brumbies of Kosciuszko

Kosciuszko National Park, home of Mount Kosciuszko, Australia's highest peak, which resides within the park. Australia isn't known for its alpine peaks, and at just over a mere 2,000 metres, it hardly rivals the Alps of other continents, but because of this, this alpine mountain range is unique. In a continent famous for arid deserts and drought, this mountain range receives winter snows that melt and fuel the icy rivers that caress the canyons and gorges as they trickle down to the plains. The freshwater rivers are home to both brown and rainbow trout, and they provide habitats for a variety of insects and small fauna. Though it snows here and has severe frosts, the rivers don't freeze, providing year-round accessible water. The rivers carve their way through the granite outcrops between ridges, and meander through the grassy bends on the plains. In spring, the alpine everlasting daisies bloom, and the plains are reinvigorated with vegetation. Unlike other parts of Australia, the seasons are more pronounced here, and the local fauna and flora have had to adapt, and one of the most successful and charismatic inhabitants of the Australian High Country are wild horses, known locally as Brumbies. Though the Brumbies are not native to this area, they have proliferated and inhabit almost every region of the Australian High Country. The ancestors of today's Brumbies began to roam these pastures soon after colonisation in the early 1800s as domestic horses that either escaped or were abandoned. But many believe the origin of the name Brumbie comes from a British coloniser, a private James Brumbie, who abandoned a group of horses in New South Wales that became wild. Though they may have originated from riding and working horses, over the years they have become smaller and hardier, most the size of ponies, which makes them better adapted to the steep terrain and harsh alpine winters. Like all wild horses, they live in herds, often led by a dominant mare and guarded by a dominant stallion. The youngsters are allowed to live in the herd for the first year or so until they reach sexual maturity, then they are pushed out and forced to join another herd or start their own. The females are often snatched up quickly by another stallion and join an existing herd, but the young males are required to start their own, and until they do, some join together in bands of young rogues. These three are such a band, and they stick together wherever they go. During the breeding season, they may even join forces to distract a stallion from his herd, or try and tag team harassing a dominant stallion in an attempt to splinter off mares from his herd. But for now, they are reinforcing bonds of brotherhood. The calf may be isolating as a young rogue, but their bonds to each other are strong, and if they can stay together as a team, they may have earned some valuable allies when it comes to forming a herd and ensuring their bloodline. The high country is a near idyllic environment for these Brumbies. Even through the winter, there is open pastureland for grazing and flowing water to drink. For the most part, this abundance of resources leads to a peaceful herd life. With plenty of natural resources, there is little to fight about, and the Brumbies are free to do as they please. Grazing is a favourite pastime, and the horses can crop the grass between 10 to 17 hours a day. Rolling is a common way to scratch an itch or protect one's coat. They prefer to use regular roll spots, and over time, these develop into shallow dust bowls. Though herd life may be peaceful, the stallions do find one limited resource worth quarrelling over – their mares. One of these stallions has led his mares just a little too close to another herd, but the two simply acknowledge each other with a regal pass-by, and then move on with their mares. Though these clashes can sometimes be violent and cause serious injury, most interactions are brief, and sometimes even diplomatic. These stallions are marking their territory by defecating on what's known as a stud pile. By grouping their droppings, they leave scent markers to each other about seniority, health, and when they pass through that area. Over time, they build up into large mounds, and act essentially as scent-based signposts. After settling a border dispute with a nearby stallion, this stallion returns to his mares and exhibits what's known as driving or snaking. He lengthens his neck and lowers his head, and with his ears pinned, he pesters his herd. This behaviour can be used either to direct and guard his mares from a danger, like a rival stallion, or to try and splinter them off for mating. Stallions live in herds as it's less likely to be attacked in a group as opposed to on their own, and look for danger. Herding can help confuse a predator, as it muddles the targets and makes it harder to pick just one, but when you watch them like this, it's easy to think perhaps they do it because it's fun. The Brummies may not have originated here, but they've made it their own. Far from the domestic lifestyle they've come from, and now near perfectly adapted to it, they're a new home among the alpine pastures of Australia's Kosciuszko National Park.