mongolia

Hustai Nuruu National Reserve is about two hours from Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia’s capital and  is the home of the last remaining species of wild horse.  The Takhi or Przewalski’s Horse has two extra chromosomes, a large head, a fairly stiff neck and short mane.  They cannot breed with domesticated horses and have never been broken despite centuries of attempts.

The Takhi became extinct in the wild in the late 1960s and only 16 remained in zoos by the early 1990s.  Shortly after Mongolia became a democracy in 1990, a program was established - with worldwide cooperation - to reintroduce the remaining animals to the wild.  Currently, Takhi horses are on three Mongolian reserves, and the population has grown to about 300.  The reserves fiercely protect the horses from humans but they are susceptible to the elements and wolves.  The program is a success and the animal population continues to grow.  All of the images below were taken at sunrise when the can most easily be seen.

And yes, we had our best sunset of the trip while at the reserve!