Wild burro's
I have decided to document my corner of the world. Up to now, I have been of the mindset that I need to go someplace else to find things to photograph. I constantly have requests from some of the photography forums that I belong to, to show them the "desert" So far I have resisted, probably because the desert is something I see everyday and it does not hold the same interest to me as it might to someone who has never been here... but upon further examination of this area and my bank balance, I have decided that these requests are very valid. So this weekend hubby and I set off for an area about 30 miles north of Yuma, along the Colorado River. Up there you find a place called Martinez Lake. Which is a rec area for those who have more money then brains. Sorry I consider owning a boat to be, as the saying goes, just a hole in the water you throw money into. And with gas prices what they are - its irresponsible. Anyway it can also be a great place for photography. So we set off for the area and I had in my mind some nice sunset photos over the river...what I found instead, and we never really made it to the river for shots I wanted, was amazing...
These guys apparently are descendants from the original herds that were brought here by the Spanish Conquistadors 100's of years ago. They were the pack animal of choice for miners who made their way here to the west in the 17-1800's. When the mines went bust, the burros were abandoned and left to fend for themselves in the desert where they live today. Many of these burros have something called "the Spanish Cross" on their backs...you can see in my picture the black stripe that goes over the back from shoulder to shoulder. What you can't see is the strip that runs from ears to tail, thus making the cross on their back near their whithers.
When we happened on this herd, it was in the last light of evening and so some of them were settling in for beddyby time...
They were very interested in us, but tolerant enough to let me get some good shots via telephoto lens...These guys were just one form of desert life we found, we also ran across quail, jack rabbits, and coyotes... I will post more in the coming days...Hope you enjoy
Pam
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Neat pictures Pammy! Thanks!
I think those markings are somewhat indicative of the breed's wildness. Wild horses will eventually revert to the coloration they had prior to the arrival of humans and that, I believe, includes the stripe down the back (maybe not the full blown Spanish cross though).
Incidentally, Alberta is known as a "rat-free" place. Much effort is put into ensuring Norway rats don't get into and settle in Alberta. Then I heard on the radio the other day that we now have a problem with wild boars in some places in the province. The wild herds got started from escapee boars from farms (I guess a few years ago some breeding stock were imported to help diversify agriculture). The wild ones are making a nuisance of themselves, chasing kids, etc., so now there's an effort to control or eradicate them.
"Which is a rec area for those who have more money then brains. Sorry I consider owning a boat to be, as the saying goes, just a hole in the water you throw money into. And with gas prices what they are - its irresponsible."
I agree. We were out at a lake yesterday and it was hard to enjoy it because all you could smell was boat exhaust (until a "considerate" lit up a smoke just upwind of us). We were fueling up the truck as we were heading out and a guy pulled in, filled up his (big) truck with fuel and then pulled forward to fill up this monster boat he was pulling. More money than brains, indeed.
Cheers!