Wild Horse Scientists (review)

This new entry in the Scientists in the Field series again demonstrates that you can find science in unexpected places. Frydenborg (author of They Dreamed of Horses, BCCB 6/94) brings her equestrian knowledge to bear in an examination of the biologists who study the wild horses in Maryland’s Assateague State Park. The focal scientist is Dr. Jay Kirkpatrick, who, with his partner Dr. John Turner, has been studying wild horses for decades in hope of preserving them; the efforts of the scientists culminated with the development and administration of a birth-control vaccine that has allowed herds to stay within manageable levels and increased the health and longevity of the mares. This is an interesting blend of a romantic, appealing subject and a practical approach; absorbing information about wild horse behavior combines effectively with fascinating details about the creation of the birth-control vaccine and relevant facts about law and policy that affect what happens to various horse populations. Copious photographs are sometimes engaging, sometimes coolly realistic (as in the images of equine corpses amid the island grasses), providing a clear-eyed view of the life cycle, habits, and habitat of wild horses. General horsey information about evolutionary history, nomenclature (“When Is a Pony Really a Horse?”), horse color, etc., appears in sidebar interjections. A glossary, list of resources, note about assisting the effort toward wild horse welfare, and an index are included.