We'll ride them some day

A fascinating article on the wild horses of Shackleford Banks, the barrier islands that form part of North Carolina's Outer Banks:

Many who see the wild horses that roam the Outer Banks conclude they're a rare and different breed. Now science may confirm it.

An equine genetics specialist from Texas is collecting genetic material -- 60 strands of hair from horses in the herds on Shackleford Banks and around Corolla -- to analyze where these postcard-perfect icons of North Carolina originated.

He expects the research will reinforce studies he conducted on the horses in the 1990s that indicated they have Spanish blood -- possibly descending from a lineage of horses brought by Spanish explorers in the 16th century.

When I was a Boy Scout, back in the late Pleistocene era, my troop went at least once a year to camp on one of the barrier islands, and I remember vividly the sense of wonder at seeing a small group of wild horses romping around.