Wild Horse Island gains four horses

WILD HORSE ISLAND - Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks released four wild horses into Wild Horse Island's Skeeko Bay Wednesday afternoon.

The mares, between six and seven-years-old, joined the two geldings currently living on the island with a management plan that calls for a herd of five wild horses to roam the 2,164-acre site.

"We've been trying to get this going since last fall, but we couldn't quite get it together," Flathead Lake Parks Manager Jerry Sawyer said. "A lot of stars had to fall into place."

State Senator Brad Hamlett, of Cascade, and Lyle Heavy Runner, of Great Falls, donated the four horses from their herd, which thrives on land leased from the Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation near Ulm. Genetically determined to be descended from the Spanish Barbs that arrived with the conquistadors in the 16th and 17th centuries, Hamlett and Heavy Runner acquired the herd's stallion from the Pryor Mountain wild horse herd in south-central Montana several years ago. They later purchased wild mares from Bureau of Land Management land in Nevada and expanded the herd.

Robert Lee, of Cromwell Island, donated a barge to ferry the truck and trailer from the main land. Cromwell Island Manager, Scott Smith helped round up a team of horse specialists, and six FWP staff members as well as one veterinarian stood by to facilitate an easy transfer. Only a small crowd of about 15 people came to watch the rare event for which even the rain held off while the horses were turned loose.

The last time a group was released on Wild Horse Island was more than 18 years ago. FWP sent three wild horses to the island in April of 1992, but only one gelding from that group remains today. At approximately 25 to 30 years of age, Sawyer said he didn't look as healthy this winter as he has in the past.

"He's still moving around OK, but even though there's plenty of forage, his ribs are starting to show," he said. "I was surprised he survived last winter, so I don't expect he'll make it through one more."

While not often home to predatory species, there is competition for forage with the island's other inhabitants, mainly the large herds of big-horn sheep and mule deer.

"It's a confined area and resources are limited," Sawyer said. "We have to find that balance between species and diversity."

The largest island on Flathead Lake, Wild Horse has been a landmark rich with history since the Salish-Kootenai Indians were reported to have used it to pasture horses to keep them from being stolen by other tribes, FWP said in a press release.

According to Sawyer, roughly 15,500 people typically visit the island from mid-May to mid-September. "The horses are really popular," he said. "Tourists come out, do some hiking and they want to see some wild horses."

All the recent rain means that the island's usually dry grasses are as tall and lush as can be. Wild flowers speckle the hillsides and animals are out in the open feeding, fattening up after a long winter.

"Right now is a perfect time to visit," Sawyer said.