Assateague Island is a 37
mile long barrier island off the coasts of Maryland and Virginia, extending
from just south of Ocean City, Maryland. Its a long skinny island with the
widest point only 3 miles. On one side is the Atlantic ocean and the other
the beautiful bay. It became a national seashore in 1965. It serves as a
refuge for many forms of wild life, but is most known for its famous wild
ponies. Over 300 wild ponies live on Assateague Island. Assateague Island
has a lighthouse which has been in operation since 1833, and is still active
today. Chincoteague Island is right next to Assateague. Chincoteague is only
7 miles long and one and a half miles wide. It lies entirely in Virginia and
is situated in between Assateague Island and the Virginia main land. Unlike
Chincoteague, which is almost fully developed, Assateague is largely
undeveloped, accept for a few facilities that serve the thousands of
tourists that visit the island each year. Visitors can camp in the
campground, enjoy the beaches, hike nature trails and of course, view the
breathtaking wildlife.
Because Assateague Island
resides in two different states, MD and VA, there are two separate
herds of ponies, those that roam Northern Maryland and those that roam
southern Virginia.
The northern Maryland end of
the island contains both Assateague State park, managed by the State of
Maryland, and part of the Assateague National Seashore, which is managed by
the National Park Service. Northern Maryland's ponies are managed by the
National Park Service.
The southern Virginia end of
Assateague is home to the Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge, managed by
the U.S. fish and Wildlife Service. Its beaches are managed by the National
Park Service. The herds of ponies on the southern Virginia end are owned and
managed by the volunteer fire company run out of Chincoteague Island.
The name Assateague is an
Indian name for "The Marshy Place Across" and Chincoteague is Indian for
"Beautiful Land Across the Water".
Assateague ponies are a
unique breed, which are almost as big as horses. Scientist do not actually
consider them to be a true pony. These Assateague horses have always
been called "ponies" by the people living on the island and the name has
stuck through the years. They come in a wide variety of colors, including
brown and white, white and black pintos, and solid brown, palominos and buck
skinned among other colors.
The ponies of Assateague can
be seen in different bands, or herds, scattered along miles of Assateague's
shoreline. The herds consist of about 4 to 12 ponies, usually including one
adult stallion, mares and foals. The stallion is the leader of the herd. He
tries to protect the herd from anything he sees as a threat, such as human
contact or other stallions.
About 70 foals are born on
Assateague each year. Foals are born in the spring. Mares are pregnant for
almost a year. They usually give birth at night. When the time comes the
pregnant mare will wander away from the rest of the herd and give birth in a
grassy area or behind a sand dune. Within minutes of the foals birth it is
wobbly, but can stand and begin to walk. They will nurse from their mothers
about 5 times an hour. At a few weeks old they will nibble grass, but will
still nurse for several months as their main source of food. Fouls spend a
lot of their time sleeping with their mothers standing guard.
When male foals grow older
the stallion of the herd will often pick fights with him. It is time for the
young male pony to leave before he challenges the stallion for control over
the heard. Small groups of bachelor colts wander the island. When they
become strong enough they attract young mares and form their own herd.
While most domestic farm
ponies live to be between 30 and 40 years old, the average lifespan of the
Assateague pony is about 20 years. Life is harsher for wild ponies than it
is for those who live on a farm.
Eighty percent of the ponies
diet consists of salt marsh grass. The salt causes them to drink twice as
much water giving them a bloated, or fat look. They will sip salt water, but
they will find fresh water throughout the island. They also eat seaweed,
rosehips bayberry twigs and even poison ivy.
Summer is the hardest season
for the ponies. Its not only hot, but flies and mosquitoes bite, often
forcing the ponies out of the forest and marsh land, onto the beaches. Wild
ponies are well accustomed to the shifting tides that effect their daily
lives. They know the best areas for water crossings. To relieve themselves
from the insects they will go into the ocean and let the waves crash over
their backs and roll in the sand. They use their tails to swat insects away.
They will also climb up on high sand dunes on windy days, using the ocean
breeze to keep insects off of them. Autumn is the easiest season for the
ponies. The weather is cool but not too cold and biting insects have, for
the most part disappeared. Tourism is down and the island is calm and
beautiful. Winter can be harsh, but not as harsh as summer. In winter the
island is very quiet. There are no bugs, most birds have flown south and
even some of the marine life has moved to warmer waters. Snow is rare on the
island, but it does occur. The ponies grow long, shaggy coats, which protect
them from the elements. There is enough dried grass around the island to
feed the ponies through the winter.
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A visit to Assateague Island
is well worth the trip. If you are visiting the island in the warmer months
be sure to bring your bug spray, as there are a high amount of mosquitoes.
Bug spray is a must if you plan to get out of your car at all.
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The ponies of Assateague are
not haunted by any predators on the island. The only real threat they
encounter is human. Assateague Island has become a tourist attraction, which
consists of a beach and campground, along with walking trails and tour
boats. Some tourist feed the ponies unhealthy food, which attracts the
ponies to the road where they can be hit by cars. These famous wild ponies
are not frightened of people, and will walk right up to humans. One must
keep in mind, while it is nice to view the ponies, it should be done from a
safe distance. These beautiful ponies may look tame and friendly, but they
are still wild animals. They can bite or kick without warning.
In order to control the
island's pony population and insure the healthy survival of the ponies who
live on Assateague, Virginia runs its Chincoteague wild pony swim. This
annual Pony Penning event has been held since 1925. The Virginia herds are
rounded up annually on the last week of July. A select group of firefighters
are sent out on horseback to round up all the ponies they can find on the
southern end of the island. The ponies are herded across a narrow channel
from Assateague to Chincoteague Island. Forty thousand visitors wait a long
the crowded shoreline for the ponies to arrive. The water is about 25 feet
deep and the swim lasts about 3 to 5 minutes. The ponies are driven down
Main Street to the Carnival grounds. On the following day an auction is
held, where many of the foals are sold to raise money for the fire company.
Unlike adult wild horses, foals are easy to tame and can make gentle pets.
The remainder of the ponies are herded back to Assateague. The famous book,
Misty of Chincoteague tells a story about this annual ritual.
How the wild ponies arrived
at Assateague hundreds of years ago is still a mystery. Some believe the
ponies swam a shore, arriving on Assateague Island during a Spanish galleon
shipwreck that sank off the beach during the 16th century. Others believe
Colonial Virginia farmers brought them over to graze on the island after the
legislature enacted laws requiring fencing and levied taxes on all livestock
due to crop damage caused by free-roaming farm animals. However they reached
Assateague the ponies became quite well adapted to the barrier island's
environment. Natural selection helped the wild ponies evolve into the hardy
size horse that flourishes on the island today.
