We often see horses standing immobile, one beside the other, facing opposite directions. Why is that?
(funnee, this one should be right up your alley…)
Don’t know if it’s true or not, but the explanation I’ve heard is that as each horse shakes its tail, it’s shooing the flies away from the other’s head. Given the level of equine intelligence, I’d assume no conscious planning was done, but presumedly evolution led horses to realize this was the most comfortable position to stand in.
True statement.
Thanks to both. Although I’ve seen horses doing this in the dead of winter, when flies do not especially abound…
Little Nemo: Always thought horses were pretty intelligent animals.
Actually, the reason I’ve always heard was that it was for mutual protection. Standing side by side and facing opposite directions gives, between the two, a 360 degree field of vision. Makes it tough for a predator to sneak up on them.
The overwhelming majority of people have more than the average (mean) number of legs. – E. Grebenik
From a natural selection perspective, Doctor Jackson’s explaination makes more sense. The horses that face the same direction would be wiped out and kept from reproducing by predators much faster than they would by fly-borne ailments.
Elmer J. Fudd,
Millionaire.
I own a mansion and a yacht.
I don’t know what region wild horses are originally from, but I was just curious as to what predator the horse is/was prey to. Large wild cats?
Packs of wolves, wild dogs, large cats. IIRC, the modern horse originated in Asia. Apparently prehistoric horses once lived in the Americas, but vanished - I guess they were all on vacation in the USSR when the continents split. Horses weren’t known in the Americas until the Spaniards reintroduced them.
Wolves, wild dogs, and large cats would be the natural predators.
Some days you’re the dog, some days you’re the hydrant.
No, no. Horses, like many other prey animals, Have pretty much 360 vision. They only have to move their heads slightly.
I say this not because I know what I’m talking about, but because I like the “swooshing flies” theory much better.
Peace,
mangeorge
I only know two things;
I know what I need to know
And
I know what I want to know
Mangeorge, 2000
Hi! Mind if I jump in?
I think the main reason horses stand head-to-tail is to avoid flies. Protection is an added benefit.
Horses have a 340-degree range of vision and ears that swivel 180 degrees. While you may see some horses standing head-to-tail when there are no flies, it is usually only close buddies that will do it. And in the case of buddies, I think it is a combination of habit and reinforcement of social bonds. But when the flies are bad, even horses who would normally not get within 10 feet of one another will stand head-to-tail. And, when the visibility is bad or the wind is up - times when they need to be most on guard against predators - very seldom will the horses stand head-to-tail. They usually all face in the same direction. It is the same when the herd is nervous.
When the bugs are bad, one horse will deliberately put his head near the other horse’s tail. Usually, the second horse must shift his front legs to put his own head near the first horse’s tail. But they don’t always do that. If a herd boss puts his head near an underdog’s tail, the underdog may not feel that the possible relief from flies is worth the risk of getting his head kicked in if he puts it too close to the boss’ hind end. Or, if there is a well-settled herd, the horses may put their heads near whatever tail happens to be nearest. So theoretically, they may end up as a chain of horses more or less connected by tails, all facing in the same direction.
All right rosie!!! Great first post. Where have you been all these years :)? Welcome to the family. Looking forward to reading more from you.
OK. My original post was an “I’ve always heard…” type thing, and certainly may not be factual, but I just didn’t believe the “bug theory” for several reasons. So I embarked on a much too long and time consuming web search. I found absolutely nothing directly answering the OP. This semi-related question and answer is from the equineinfo.com faq (sounds authoritive anyway):
[quote]
YOU ALWAYS HEAR DON’T WALK BEHIND A HORSE. DO THEY ALL KICK?
Although there are a few horses that will intentionally kick at you, most of the time if a horse kicks at someone behind them it is because directly behind a horse is another blind spot. Consider that in the wild a horse’s predators would approach from behind and you’ll understand why many horses kick first and determine the source later. Make sure the horse knows you are there and you aren’t likely to get kicked. Play it safe anyway, though, and either walk right next to them (after letting them know you are there) or walk so far behind that they can’t kick you.
[quote]
The part in italics seems to support the mutual protection theory. Anyone care to find the definitive cite?
To be fair, I’ll post the reasons that I find the bug theory lacking. Feel free to shoot them down. This is turning into a ChiefScott/shoe polish can hole thing with me. I just gotta know!
Bug theory weaknesses:
-
Cows don’t do it. They have the same bug problems as horses, the same type tail, and the same general environment. The difference is that there have been no “wild” cows for hundreds of years, long enough to loose the protection instinct.
-
Wild horses also exibit the “facing opposite” behaviour. Other large wild mammals move over large territories to minimize insect problems. For instance, the annual emergence of mosquitoes is cited as a major trigger of the caribou migration. While it’s possible that wild horses adopted the “facing opposite” behavior to fend off insects, it seems the migration tactic would be much more effective.
3.omni-not’s true assertion that horses exibit this behavior even in the absence of insects.
- Elmer’s natural selection observation.
OK, go to it! Let’s nail this puppy shut!
Uh, Doc, have you compared a horse’s tail and a cow’s tail lately? They’re about as different as different can get. A cow trying to brush flies off of a buddy would just be beating it in the face with a stick. Horse tails are much more suitable.
I imagine the true answer is somewhat of a combination of the two theories. However, I think the ‘watch for predators’ theory is a little weaker than the fly theory. Remember that both horses and cows are herd animals. I don’t know much about herd behavior in cows, but with horses the herd stallion is primarily on watch against predators, as well as the lead mare and the animals at the fringes of the herd. My own guess is that the head-to-tail positioning is a somewhat instinctive behavior that also encourages bonding between herd members. Horses that are comfortable with each other will automatically assume the position when resting because it is reassuring and who knows? a fly might just come along. When flies are a problem, even horses that normally avoid each other will seek each other out for relief.
It would be interesting to see some studies of wild horse herd behavior - I know some have been done, but have no idea of where to find them.
Some days you’re the dog, some days you’re the hydrant.
“Hi! Mind if I jump in?”
—Rosie, Riding instructor
Of course you can, and welcome.
Nothing like hearing it from the, er, “horses mouth” as it were. :roll eyes:
I love it when an expert say’s exactly what I want to hear. Thanks.
Peace,
mangeorge
I only know two things;
I know what I need to know
And
I know what I want to know
Mangeorge, 2000
Thanks for the warm welcome!
I wasn’t able to find any definitive answer on the subject. However, because the behavior occurs most frequently when the flies are bad and very seldom when the animals would be most at risk from predators, most horsepeople agree that they do it to hide their faces from flies. But, without any proof to the contrary, I have to admit that the predatory theory is possible. (As a horseperson, though, I have absolutely no doubt that they do it to avoid flies.)
Here are a couple of quotes from admittedly questionable sources:
From a site about the wild ponies of Assateague: (http://www.gorp.com/gorp/resource/us_ns/md/hors_asa.htm)
“Far more annoying are three varieties of biting flies. When the insects become too ferocious, the ponies rub themselves on vegetation, roll in the sand, or swish their tails in each other’s faces.”
Written by a settler in Queensland: (http://www.tsd.jcu.edu.au/hist/fever/settlers/flies.html)
“We adopted the usual plan of making a big smoke into which the horses in the paddock could enter and remain as much as possible out of reach of the flies. When flies are troublesome a horse with a short tail has a bad time of it, none of the others will mate with him; he has to stand with his head in a bush. At such times horses stand together head and tail brushing the flies off each other’s eyes, and unless disturbed will often remain in this position the whole day.”
Okay, so they’re weak, but I don’t know offhand of any studies that address this. But I’ll keep looking.
BTW, I’m willing to bow to Rosie’s superior knowledge in this matter, as she is obviously more qualified than I am to comment! I haven’t really done anything with horses in years and years, except for occasionally helping my vet with his horses or the ones at the handicapped riding center. I’d probably fall off if I tried to ride one now (and make a horse’s ass of myself).
Some days you’re the dog, some days you’re the hydrant.
Maybe horses like the smell of flatulence?
I wasn’t able to find any good info online, but I sent out e-mails to a couple of real experts last night and here’s the first response I received:
This one is from Sharon L. Crowell-Davis, Ph.D., D.V.M., Dip.ACVB (Applied and Clinical Animal Behavior), from the University of Georgia:
“Ultimately, you’re probably both right. We humans tend to want to assume that there is always one specific reason for a given behavior by animals. In many cases, there can be multiple reasons. From the
thousands of hours I’ve spent watching domestic horses who are under no threat of predation, and the few hours I’ve spent directly observing ferals, I think that there is primarily a simple, proximate cause—keep the flies away. I have never measured this empirically, but they rarely do it in winter, do it a lot in the summer, and do it almost constantly when the flies are dense. I can well remember some very miserable summer days when the flies were very bad. The horses were standing head to tail with their eyes closed and their tails swishing, taking care of each other. I had no such help. On the other hand, with the horses facing in opposite directions, they certainly have an extensive view of the horizon, between the two of them. So there may be occasions in the wild when the positioning serves this function as well. Nevertheless, as said above, it is uncommon in winter.”
If anyone is interested, I’ll post any other replies when I get them.
Go Rosie! I’ll settle for a tie (somebody bring my sister here so’s I can kiss 'er).
I went to the UGA website, but found no pertinent info there. Thanks for taking it to the next level.