Every winter there are tree works as part of the management of the New Forest. The Electricity Board tree surgeons have been pollarding and clearing branches or trees that are growing dangerously near to overhead power lines. Piles of pollarded holly have been left for the ponies and deer to eat.
They enjoy leaves and branches .....
....and the sweet bark of mature holly trees.
A good, thick moustashe helps when eating holly and gorse.
A group of ponies have been following the tree surgeons around, waiting for the spoils of their work.
Strong teeth and tough gums are essential.
Bark is patiently scraped and chewed from logs of beech and holly....
....but the tougher bark of oak has less appeal.
Out in the rusty bracken, groups of ponies are finding sweet shoots of gorse to eat.
By evening, they will have wandered away, leaving the piles of holly and logs to shy roe deer who come to the heathland edge to feed at dusk.
This young pony was looking for her grey mother. Soon they had found each other and joined their family group as the ponies wandered off, through long established tracks across the heath.
14 comments:
Had no idea they could eat food of that nature! They must have mouths of iron!
Beautiful photographs DW - and good to know they get greenery to eat in the winter. If it gets very bad does anyone give them hay?
Adore this post.
Love that the ponies were following the tree surgeons waiting for their feast.
cheers, parsnip
Interesting that they leave the oak bark. Imagine being able to eat holly! Certainly they must have iron tongues.
Esther Montgomery
http://estherandthetimemachine.blogspot.co.uk/
To answer Pat`s question (Weaver of Grass), the ponies mostly fend for themselves, but sometimes a commoner will put out a pile of hay for local animals if the weather gets really severe.
This year the Forest Ponies are all in good condition without any supplementary feeding. They can roam over a wide area to graze. If a pony does become thin or unwell, the Agister can ask its commoner owner to take it home to recover.
Good to see your little local herd happily making the most of what is available. I recognize most of them! The tree surgeons have certainly taken your boundary right down now. Is it that low all along its length? A loss of shelter if so.
Great photos - especially the handlebar moustache!
such lovely ponies, i didn't realise they ate bark
Lovely set of photos and beautiful ponies. An interesting post as I didn't realise they ate bark either!
A lovely post, DW, with some beautiful photos. That is interesting about what the ponies eat and that they've learnt to follow the tree surgeons around. I wouldn't have thought they could eat such tough and prickly food.
What beautiful photos of the ponies,I could almost smell the scent of gorse flowers, sap and horse!
So lovely. They're beautiful animals.
Love the beautiful wild ponies. Your photos are fantastic!
A lovely post! It is fascinating learning more about the ponies. A lovely post! Sarah x
Post a Comment