For those reasons, Fish and Wild- 

 life officials requested that the permit 

 for the fence be denied. Another permit 

 is necessary from the U.S. Army Corps 

 of Engineers, Merritt notes, and his 

 agency plans to comment again on the 

 threat to the refuge's endangered 

 species. 



Similar problems exist on 

 Shackleford Island, managed by the 

 Cape Lookout National Seashore. 



Hatteras; Cape Lookout; Cumberland 

 Island, Ga.; and Assateague Island, Md. 



The study comes just in time, says 

 Michael Rikard, resource management 

 specialist at Cape Lookout. Little re- 

 search has been done so far on the 

 horses' health and their impact on dune 

 ecology, plant life and other species. 



With about 200 horses running on 

 Shackleford now, the island may be 

 reaching its capacity, Rikard says. There 



"Our main goal is to perpetuate 

 whatever natural or cultural resources 

 are there," says Harris. In other words, 

 if non-native species such as the horses 

 are keeping the island from evolving in 

 its natural state, the situation must be 

 examined. 



The National Park Service is ex- 

 pected this summer to begin a 

 three-year management plan to do just 

 that at its park property at Cape 



■■■■■■ 



is evidence already that they are affect- 

 ing the natural process of salt marsh 

 accumulation and the habitats of other 

 native animals that use the marsh. 



The horses play host, too, to a 

 thriving tick population, he adds. And 

 their droppings often coat the island like 

 a thick, smelly tar. 



"There are times it smells like a 

 barnyard out there," Rikard says. 



Overpopulation threatened the herd 



seven years ago on Carrot Island, which 

 is managed by the Division of Coastal 

 Management. Twenty-nine horses died 

 during the winter of 1986, primarily 

 from lack of food. Twenty-four healthy 

 feral horses remain on the island today, 

 a suitable number for a 2,600-acre es- 

 tuarine reserve, officials say. 



The answer may lie in controlling 

 carrying capacity, or population num- 

 bers; setting boundaries such as 

 Ocracoke's 200-acre pen; and under- 

 standing the impacts and interactions of 

 the horses with other natural resources, 

 management officials say. Further re- 

 search into the genetics of the horses 

 will also play a role in keeping the 

 populations viable. 



In the mid-1970s, for example, the 

 National Park Service introduced an 



GIVEN THE ROMANCE 

 AND MYSTERY 

 OF THEIR HISTORY, 

 MANY PEOPLE WOULD 

 LIKE TO SEE THESE 

 HORSES CONTINUE 

 TO ROAM THE BARRIER 

 ISLANDS AS THEY HAVE 

 FOR CENTURIES. 



Andalusian stallion to the Ocracoke 

 herd, which had declined from more 

 than 300 at the turn of the century to 

 nine in 1976. Genetic defects because 

 of inbreeding were causing colt after 

 colt to die. 



"We have a very controlled breed- 

 ing program," says Caswell, the park's 

 ranger. "The park is still looking at how 

 many we have to have to perpetuate the 

 breed." 



Given the romance and mystery of 

 their history, many people would like to 

 see these horses continue to roam the 

 barrier islands as they have for centu- 

 ries. Practically, however, resource 

 managers question the viability and 

 effects of such random wanderings on 

 natural habitats more rightly claimed by 

 other creatures. [3 



COASTWATCH 9 



