Wild foal made an orphan after tourists took it from its mom, NC national park says

A newborn wild horse on one of North Carolina’s barrier islands had to be permanently taken from its mother after well-meaning tourists ferried it off the Shackleford Banks, according to Cape Lookout National Seashore.

The incident happened March 26, and the people involved have been cited for removing a wild horse from a national park, the National Park Service said in a news release.

If convicted, they could face up to six months in jail and/or be fined $5,000, National Park Service reports. The names of the tourists were not released.

Investigators say the incident began when the tourists “encountered a newborn foal” that followed them around the island for about two hours.

They became concerned after seeing no adult horses during that time, but park officials note that is not uncommon within the herd.

“A stallion, when it is trying to protect its group of mares, might drive them away from a location where a foal is sleeping (and) then keep a mare from going back to get her foal because he does not want to lose her. In this case, the foal might lose contact with its harem,” park officials said.

“When the visitors moved to their boat to leave the island the foal tried to follow them. With the best of intentions, thinking that the foal would drown, they lifted the foal into the boat and departed, thereby removing the horse from its natural habitat, its mother, and the herd.”

Reuniting a mother and child within a herd of 120-plus horses is nearly impossible, so the foal is now permanently without its mother, the park said.

It will be raised “as a domesticated animal” by the Foundation for Shackleford Horses, a nonprofit that advocates for the wild horses living within Cape Lookout National Seashore.

“For a short period early in a foal’s life, it instinctively follows its dam without necessarily knowing which creature she is. When separated, the foal will follow other horses or even people,” National Park Service wildlife biologist Sue Stuska said in a release.

Foaling season on the Outer Banks starts in March, and more young horses will soon be appearing on beaches, often sleeping “on their sides, nearly motionless, for hours,” the park said in its advice to future tourists.

This story was originally published April 4, 2022 at 2:40 PM with the headline "Wild foal made an orphan after tourists took it from its mom, NC national park says."