THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Wednesday, August 23, 1995 TAG: 9508230455
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B1 EDITION: NORTH CAROLINA
SOURCE: BY ANNE SAITA, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: COROLLA LENGTH: Medium: 60 lines
Some of the wild horses whose ancestors have freely roamed this Outer Banks community for centuries may be headed to other pastures.
Eleven horses from three herds will be moved to Smithfield, N.C., within a few weeks if the Corolla Wild Horse Fund cannot find a local benefactor willing to keep them.
``We would prefer that the horses would be able to stay in Currituck County, but since no one has come forward with a grant of land for the protection of the horses, the fund has looked into the possibility of placing these 11 horses in another area,'' said Rowena Dorman, the fund's director.
Dorman's comments came during a discussion Monday evening at the Currituck County Board of Commissioners meeting.
Wild-horse advocates and at least one county official made a last-minute appeal to residents to keep the feral horses as close to their native habitat as possible.
``They're part of our heritage, part of our culture,'' said County Manager Bill Richardson.
The horses, which often draw crowds of tourists as they graze along roadways and within private developments, are believed to be descendants of animals that swam ashore from Spanish shipwrecks.
Since 1989, 16 horses have been killed by traffic, including two since June.
The Corolla Wild Horse Fund in March erected a $35,000 sea-to-sound fence north of N.C. Route 12 in an attempt to corral the horses, whose safety has become a big concern since Corolla residential and commercial development took off several years ago.
It was only a matter of days after the fence was finished, however, before the first horse breached the barrier by swimming around the shallow Currituck Sound. By mid-July, just about all of the 28 known horses had roamed into upscale resort areas and had to be re-herded.
Many of the horses now appear content to stay behind the fence; others refuse to be confined.``These 11 horses travel in three separate herds and have become semi-tamed from interaction with the public and the salad-bar environment,'' Dorman said in a prepared statement.
Later she added, ``The task of protecting both the horses and the public has grown beyond our ability to control.''
Dorman said Bobby Evans of Smithfield, who has cared for a number of horses in the Carova area, has agreed to accept the herd if a closer home cannot be found.
``We'll be able to keep the herds as they are in the wild,'' Dorman told commissioners.
The Corolla Wild Horse Fund set the following rules:
Horses cannot be sold or given away.
Herds must remain intact as they are removed.
The benefactors are responsible for horses' health, safety and well-being.
Fund members may inspect the animals and remove them at any time if the proper environment is not provided. by CNB