The Evolution of the Horse by Elisa Vatta

July 13, 2021 - Horses and humans have had a relationship for over a thousand years. Horses were used as a means of transportation before trains and cars were invented. But how did the horse come to be as we see it today? It must have looked like something different millions of years ago.

The horse started out very small. It was no bigger than a hare. Scientists call that horse Eohippus. Eohippus lived in the Eocene period, fifty-four to thirty-eight million years ago in North America. Its teeth were made for leaves and other low vegetation. Its forefeet had four toes and its back feet had three toes. Eohippus later evolved, becoming Mesohippus. Mesohippus showed significant changes. All its feet had three toes and it became a bit bigger. Its teeth showed some change too; the pre-molars that Eohippus had becoming more like real molars. It lived in the Oligocene period, thirty-seven to twenty-six million years ago. But the most significant change of all happened in the Miocene period when the horse showed major changes. When the forests gave way to grasslands and plains, the horse needed to evolve to adapt to its environment. Its legs became longer to escape from predators easily, its teeth changed so it could graze, and its feet changed significantly, leading to the evolution of the hoof. This horse is called Pliohippus. Later, the horse story became much more complicated with lots of sub-species and many more changes, until Equus came to roam North America.

Equus looked a lot like today’s modern Przewalski Horse. Hooves, teeth made for grazing, mane and tail, and a size very close to what we see today. But after a while, the horse evolution story takes a rough turn. The Ice Age. A long time ago, the area that is now the Atlantic Ocean didn’t exist! Instead, there were land bridges that connected Europe, Asia, and Africa. During the Ice Age, Equus migrated via the land bridges to Europe, Asia, and Africa. After the ice began to melt, for some unknown reason, the horse disappeared from North America. It was later reintroduced thousands of years later, when the conquistadores came to America. But in the meantime, the horse continued to evolve in Europe, Asia, and Africa. And that’s were Pony Type 1, Pony Type 2, Horse Type 3, and Horse Type 4 come into the story.

In Europe, the horse evolved to create a strong, heavy horse (named Equus Silvaticus by scientists.) In Asia, the horse evolved to create the Asiatic Wild Horse (with survivors found as late as 1881 and later called the Przewalski Horse.) In eastern Europe, the horse evolved to create a much more refined horse than the other two and is the ancestor of sport and competition horses. That’s where the pony types come into place. Pony Type 1 inhabited northwestern Europe and looked like the modern Exmoor pony. Pony Type 2 inhabited northern Eurasia and its closest look-alike is the Highland Pony. It was much more heavily built, bigger and very sturdy. Horse Type 3 was even bigger and resembled the Akhal-Teke horse. Horse Type 4, who lived in western Asia, was the smallest of the horse and pony types but was the most refined of all, and looked like the Caspian Pony.

In conclusion, horses and humans share a story of over a thousand years. They helped horses before “iron horses” or trains were invented. But the story of the horse is more complicated than it seems, and the horse has had many different aspects over the course of the last millions of years. Later on, humans started breeding horses, and created the over 200 horse breeds we now know exist, but this is the real and true story of how the horse evolved.

Biography
My name is Elisa Vatta, I am 10 years old, and I live in Indiana. I love horses, and I started to ride two years ago. I have attended several horse shows. The last one was in June 2021 at the World Equestrian Center (WEC) in Wilmington, Ohio and I won Reserve Champion.
I love to write and I am doing a major in creative writing. I have written a mystery book revolving around horses and show rings. My current project is a realistic fiction about a horse and human relationship.
I also play piano, and I attended several piano competitions where I always placed first and second place. In 2019 I won first place at the Indiana Young Hoosier State Piano Competition.
I also like to play outside, make crafts and bake horse treats.