Coffin Bay Pony
Encyclopedia
The Coffin Bay Pony is a semi-feral horse
that developed in Australia
. These ponies evolved from foundation bloodstock
of 60 Timor Ponies
that were imported by English settlers from Indonesia
to Coffin Bay, on the southern tip of the Eyre Peninsula
at Coffin Bay, South Australia.
Coffin Bay Ponies are often confused with Australia's most noted feral horses, the Brumby
, which lives in wild mobs all over Australia. However, Coffin Bay ponies live in a fenced protected area.
and riding
.
Domesticated ponies have a very manageable and friendly temperament that is suitable for children and small adults. Even feral ponies also possess a friendly, intelligent temperament.
Coffin Bay ponies can vary in height but they are not above . They are mainly bay, brown
, black
, chestnut
, grey
, red and blue roan
and dun
, but all solid colours are permissible. Broken colours such as pinto
testify to the presence of other bloodlines and are therefore not permitted. White markings
on the legs or face are acceptable.
to breed ponies that were well suited for the hot climate.
Hawson’s company expanded and the Timor ponies were moved to his new lease at the Coffin Bay Run in 1847. Here they were bred in a semi-wild, yet controlled manner in the new stud, Coffin Bay Run. In 1857 Coffin Bay Run was sold to W.R. Mortlock who instead of investing in the pure Timor ponies, imported larger horses and ponies, which he crossed with the semi-wild Timor ponies to produce larger stock. Mortlock used approved stallions of the Welsh Cob, Thoroughbred
and Arabian Horse
breeds in the herd. He also used Clydesdale and Hackney horses who may have had influence on the Coffin Bay Ponies.
Mortlock used a selective breeding
plan and culled unwanted ponies which were sold. During the early 1860s, the ponies were very popular and often sold in pairs and matching teams to be used for driving, while others were sold and used for polo
and as cavalry
horses.
In 1927 Mortlock's descendants sold the Coffin Bay Run to Martin Cash. Before the sale, the management of the farm and horse herd had been neglected, as it was no longer commercially viable to breed horses. Ponies became untamed and wild, growing rapidly in number and causing major problems for the farm's new owner. Many of the ponies were culled or shot in order to reduce their numbers.
The Morgan family purchased the Coffin Bay Run in 1932. This family immediately saw potential for these ponies and sold them instead of shooting them. Ponies became popular again when the depression
led to petrol and diesel becoming rationed and very expensive. Tractors, which once had replaced horses for field work on the farms, were now too expensive to use, making ponies and horses indispensable. The Morgan family therefore mustered a small portion of the herd a few times during the year and sold them at markets in Port Augusta.
After World War II
finished, however, demand for ponies declined as the economy stabilized and the mechanization of society made equine work animals obsolete. Moss Morgan, who owned the farm during this time, developed a new use for Coffin Bay Ponies, which he had mustered, trained to ride, and then sold as riding ponies.
In 1972, the farm was taken over by Geoff Morgan. In an attempt to save the herd, he gave the farm to the South Australia Government to transform the land into a national park. Ponies could still live in the park and were there when the peninsula was formally declared a National Park in 1982. They were then regarded as feral
animals on land being managed for the preservation of native species. The National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) then launched a program to eliminate the ponies from the peninsula. Concerned locals banded together to form the non-profit Coffin Bay Pony Society, a volunteer group dedicated to keeping the ponies in the Park. This group would work out a compromise in order to permit the horses to stay if they were managed under more controlled conditions.
Ponies had caused damage on land within the national park but it was agreed that the breed had a historical value. In 1991 the first Management Agreement was entered into between the Coffin Bay Pony Society and the National Parks and Wildlife Service. It allowed then a much smaller herd, or "mob," consisting of twenty mare
s, one stallion
, and their foal
s, to live in the park. To avoid the mobs growing in numbers, the ponies were mustered once a year, to be handled and then auctioned. A predetermined price per head went to the NPWS for land management and the rest of the money was used by the Coffin Bay Pony Society.
In 1999 the National Parks and Wildlife Service devised a new Draft Management Plan for the area that included the proposal of a Wilderness Zone that would take the ponies away from their natural pastures. After failing to consult with the Office of Environment and Heritage, the Government ordered that the herd should be moved. Following the public outcry that ensued in 2003, the State Government was forced to compromise. Instead of being eliminated, the ponies were relocated to a special parcel of nearby land purchased equally by the Pony Preservation Society and the State Government for A$200,000.
On 29 February 2004, the final mob of 35 or 40 ponies were moved to their new home, ironically called the "Brumbies Run", near Coffin Bay. The ponies are now living there with minimal contact from people, but may be viewed in a vehicle by arrangement with the preservation society. Once a year they are mustered, handled, and auctioned.
Feral horse
A feral horse is a free-roaming horse of domesticated ancestry. As such, a feral horse is not a wild animal in the sense of an animal without domesticated ancestors. However, some populations of feral horses are managed as wildlife, and these horses often are popularly called "wild" horses...
that developed in Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
. These ponies evolved from foundation bloodstock
Foundation bloodstock
Foundation bloodstock or foundation stock are horses that are the progenitor, or foundation, of a new horse breed or a given bloodline within a breed. The term is also used in a similar manner when discussing purebred dogs...
of 60 Timor Ponies
Timor Pony
The Timor Pony was developed on Timor Island, likely from Indian breeds of horses and ponies that were imported to the island. The Timor Pony is thought to be closely related to the Flores Pony, which was developed on nearby Flores Island. Both breeds are used by the local people for cattle work, ...
that were imported by English settlers from Indonesia
Indonesia
Indonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...
to Coffin Bay, on the southern tip of the Eyre Peninsula
Eyre Peninsula
Eyre Peninsula is a triangular peninsula in South Australia. It is bounded on the east by Spencer Gulf, the west by the Great Australian Bight, and the north by the Gawler Ranges. It is named after explorer Edward John Eyre who explored some of it in 1839-1841. The coastline was first explored by...
at Coffin Bay, South Australia.
Coffin Bay Ponies are often confused with Australia's most noted feral horses, the Brumby
Brumby
A Brumby is a free-roaming feral horse in Australia. Although found in many areas around the country, the best-known brumbies are found in the Australian Alps region in south-eastern Australia. Today, most of them are found in the Northern Territory, with the second largest population in Queensland...
, which lives in wild mobs all over Australia. However, Coffin Bay ponies live in a fenced protected area.
Characteristics
Coffin Bay ponies have always been reared in a semi-wild and wild manner, which has made them healthy and hardy with strong bones and hooves. Ponies have a conformation which is very reminiscent of a Timor pony with good hindquarters and short legs. They have a kind and intelligent eye. There are two acceptable types of Coffin Bay ponies, the lighter saddle type and a slightly stronger type with clean legs, for both drivingDriving (horse)
Driving, when applied to horses, ponies, mules, or donkeys, is a broad term for hitching equines to a wagon, carriage, cart, sleigh, or other horse-drawn vehicle by means of a harness and working them in this way...
and riding
Equestrianism
Equestrianism more often known as riding, horseback riding or horse riding refers to the skill of riding, driving, or vaulting with horses...
.
Domesticated ponies have a very manageable and friendly temperament that is suitable for children and small adults. Even feral ponies also possess a friendly, intelligent temperament.
Coffin Bay ponies can vary in height but they are not above . They are mainly bay, brown
Seal brown (horse)
Seal brown is a hair coat color of horses characterized by a near-black body color; with black points, the mane, tail and legs; but also reddish or tan areas around the eyes, muzzle, behind the elbow and in front of the stifle...
, black
Black (horse)
Black is a hair coat color of horses in which the entire hair coat is black. Black is a relatively uncommon coat color, and novices frequently mistake dark chestnuts or bays for black. However, some breeds of horses, such as the Friesian horse, Murgese and Ariegeois are almost exclusively black...
, chestnut
Chestnut (coat)
Chestnut is a hair coat color of horses consisting of a reddish-to-brown coat with a mane and tail the same or lighter in color than the coat. Genetically and visually, chestnut is characterized by the absolute absence of true black hairs...
, grey
Gray (horse)
Gray or grey is a coat color of horses characterized by progressive silvering of the colored hairs of the coat. Most gray horses have black skin and dark eyes; unlike many depigmentation genes, gray does not affect skin or eye color Their adult hair coat is white, dappled, or white intermingled...
, red and blue roan
Roan (horse)
Roan is a horse coat color pattern characterized by an even mixture of colored and white hairs on the body, while the head and "points"—lower legs, mane and tail—are more solid-colored. The roan pattern is dominantly-inherited, and is found in many horse breeds...
and dun
Dun gene
The dun gene is a dilution gene that affects both red and black pigments in the coat color of a horse. The dun gene has the ability to affect the appearance of all black, bay, or chestnut -based horses to some degree by lightening the base body coat and suppressing the underlying base color to the...
, but all solid colours are permissible. Broken colours such as pinto
Pinto horse
A pinto horse has a coat color that consists of large patches of white and any other color. The distinction between "pinto" and "solid" can be tenuous, as so-called "solid" horses frequently have areas of white hair. Various cultures throughout history appear to have selectively bred for pinto...
testify to the presence of other bloodlines and are therefore not permitted. White markings
Horse markings
Markings on horses usually are distinctive white areas on an otherwise dark base coat color. Most horses have some markings, and they help to identify the horse as a unique individual. Markings are present at birth and do not change over the course of the horse's life...
on the legs or face are acceptable.
History
In 1839, the settler and British Captain Hawson and his family arrived in Happy Valley in Australia to live and breed horses. With him came the 60 Timor Ponies which Captain Hawson had purchased from the Rajah of Sumatra in Indonesia. These ponies would be the basis of Hawson’s newly established stud farmStud farm
A stud farm or stud in animal husbandry, is an establishment for selective breeding of livestock. The word "stud" comes from the Old English stod meaning "herd of horses, place where horses are kept for breeding" Historically, documentation of the breedings that occur on a stud farm leads to the...
to breed ponies that were well suited for the hot climate.
Hawson’s company expanded and the Timor ponies were moved to his new lease at the Coffin Bay Run in 1847. Here they were bred in a semi-wild, yet controlled manner in the new stud, Coffin Bay Run. In 1857 Coffin Bay Run was sold to W.R. Mortlock who instead of investing in the pure Timor ponies, imported larger horses and ponies, which he crossed with the semi-wild Timor ponies to produce larger stock. Mortlock used approved stallions of the Welsh Cob, Thoroughbred
Thoroughbred
The Thoroughbred is a horse breed best known for its use in horse racing. Although the word thoroughbred is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thoroughbred breed...
and Arabian Horse
Arabian horse
The Arabian or Arab horse is a breed of horse that originated on the Arabian Peninsula. With a distinctive head shape and high tail carriage, the Arabian is one of the most easily recognizable horse breeds in the world. It is also one of the oldest breeds, with archaeological evidence of horses...
breeds in the herd. He also used Clydesdale and Hackney horses who may have had influence on the Coffin Bay Ponies.
Mortlock used a selective breeding
Selective breeding
Selective breeding is the process of breeding plants and animals for particular genetic traits. Typically, strains that are selectively bred are domesticated, and the breeding is sometimes done by a professional breeder. Bred animals are known as breeds, while bred plants are known as varieties,...
plan and culled unwanted ponies which were sold. During the early 1860s, the ponies were very popular and often sold in pairs and matching teams to be used for driving, while others were sold and used for polo
Polo
Polo is a team sport played on horseback in which the objective is to score goals against an opposing team. Sometimes called, "The Sport of Kings", it was highly popularized by the British. Players score by driving a small white plastic or wooden ball into the opposing team's goal using a...
and as cavalry
Cavalry
Cavalry or horsemen were soldiers or warriors who fought mounted on horseback. Cavalry were historically the third oldest and the most mobile of the combat arms...
horses.
In 1927 Mortlock's descendants sold the Coffin Bay Run to Martin Cash. Before the sale, the management of the farm and horse herd had been neglected, as it was no longer commercially viable to breed horses. Ponies became untamed and wild, growing rapidly in number and causing major problems for the farm's new owner. Many of the ponies were culled or shot in order to reduce their numbers.
The Morgan family purchased the Coffin Bay Run in 1932. This family immediately saw potential for these ponies and sold them instead of shooting them. Ponies became popular again when the depression
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
led to petrol and diesel becoming rationed and very expensive. Tractors, which once had replaced horses for field work on the farms, were now too expensive to use, making ponies and horses indispensable. The Morgan family therefore mustered a small portion of the herd a few times during the year and sold them at markets in Port Augusta.
After World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
finished, however, demand for ponies declined as the economy stabilized and the mechanization of society made equine work animals obsolete. Moss Morgan, who owned the farm during this time, developed a new use for Coffin Bay Ponies, which he had mustered, trained to ride, and then sold as riding ponies.
In 1972, the farm was taken over by Geoff Morgan. In an attempt to save the herd, he gave the farm to the South Australia Government to transform the land into a national park. Ponies could still live in the park and were there when the peninsula was formally declared a National Park in 1982. They were then regarded as feral
Feral
A feral organism is one that has changed from being domesticated to being wild or untamed. In the case of plants it is a movement from cultivated to uncultivated or controlled to volunteer. The introduction of feral animals or plants to their non-native regions, like any introduced species, may...
animals on land being managed for the preservation of native species. The National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) then launched a program to eliminate the ponies from the peninsula. Concerned locals banded together to form the non-profit Coffin Bay Pony Society, a volunteer group dedicated to keeping the ponies in the Park. This group would work out a compromise in order to permit the horses to stay if they were managed under more controlled conditions.
Ponies had caused damage on land within the national park but it was agreed that the breed had a historical value. In 1991 the first Management Agreement was entered into between the Coffin Bay Pony Society and the National Parks and Wildlife Service. It allowed then a much smaller herd, or "mob," consisting of twenty mare
Mare
Female horses are called mares.Mare is the Latin word for "sea".The word may also refer to:-People:* Ahmed Marzooq, also known as Mare, a footballer and Secretary General of Maldives Olympic Committee* Mare Winningham, American actress and singer...
s, one stallion
Stallion
A Stallion is a male horse.Stallion may also refer to:* Stallion , an American pop rock group* Stallion , a figure in the Gobot toyline* Stallion , a character in the console role-playing game series...
, and their foal
Foal
A foal is an equine, particularly a horse, that is one year old or younger. More specific terms are colt for a male foal and filly for a female foal, but these terms are used until the horse is age three or four. When the foal is nursing from its dam , it may also be called a suckling...
s, to live in the park. To avoid the mobs growing in numbers, the ponies were mustered once a year, to be handled and then auctioned. A predetermined price per head went to the NPWS for land management and the rest of the money was used by the Coffin Bay Pony Society.
In 1999 the National Parks and Wildlife Service devised a new Draft Management Plan for the area that included the proposal of a Wilderness Zone that would take the ponies away from their natural pastures. After failing to consult with the Office of Environment and Heritage, the Government ordered that the herd should be moved. Following the public outcry that ensued in 2003, the State Government was forced to compromise. Instead of being eliminated, the ponies were relocated to a special parcel of nearby land purchased equally by the Pony Preservation Society and the State Government for A$200,000.
On 29 February 2004, the final mob of 35 or 40 ponies were moved to their new home, ironically called the "Brumbies Run", near Coffin Bay. The ponies are now living there with minimal contact from people, but may be viewed in a vehicle by arrangement with the preservation society. Once a year they are mustered, handled, and auctioned.