North Carolina’s Wild Horses Will Rely On This Trick To Weather Hurricane Erin

[Desmond Milligan 0]

Key Takeaways

• The wild Banker horses of North Carolina’s Outer Banks have survived storms for centuries and instinctively know how to protect themselves.

• As Hurricane Erin approaches, experts say the horses will naturally head to high ground, gather in groups, and turn “butts to the wind” to brace against gusts.

• Despite evacuations for humans, the Corolla Wild Horse Fund reassures the public that rounding up the herd isn’t needed or safe—the horses are already storm-savvy.

Even with the water rising and mandatory evacuations issued for parts of the Outer Banks due to Hurricane Erin's approach, wildlife experts aren't all too concerned about the wild horses that roam the barrier islands. Instead, they’ve been busy assuaging the public.

"The Bankers have survived on these barrier islands for hundreds of years and have successfully weathered countless storms," the Corolla Wild Horse Fund wrote on Facebook Monday. "It’s a natural part of life for them and has been for many, many generations. We would never round them up and move them ahead of a storm. It’s completely unfeasible and unsafe for a mile-long list of reasons, and would be a gross overreach from a herd management perspective."

At time of publication, Hurricane Erin is not expected to make landfall on the Outer Banks. Mandatory evacuations are currently in place to prevent people from becoming trapped by the flooding Erin is forecasted to generate from offshore.

But the famous Banker horses will be fine even if things change and Erin does make landfall. Just like they did during hurricanes Florence and Dorian, the horses will huddle together and ride out the storm using a trick horses have used for centuries. The colonial Spanish mustangs will close ranks with their “butts to the wind,” which stabilizes them against storm gusts.

“The wild horses are better equipped to handle a hurricane than most of us humans living on the Outer Banks,” the Corolla Wild Horse Fund wrote on Facebook ahead of Hurricane Dorian in 2019. “They go to high ground, under the sturdy live oak trees, to ride the storm out. Remember, they’ve been doing this for 500 years!”

The horses group together when they sense changes in air pressure.

“They have an institutional knowledge of where it’s high, dry, and safe,” Meg Puckett, herd manager for the Corolla Wild Horse Fund, previously told OBX Today. “It’s one of the few times we see a lot of the different harems come together.”

Stay safe out there, y'all. And remember, butts to the wind!

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