Przewalski's horse or the last wild horse on Earth

30 unique photographs will show you one year of a wild horse’s life. 

Przewalski's horse - also known as the Mongolian wild horse or Dzungarian horse – is not just any wild animal. It is the last remaining species of wild horses on Earth. This rare and endangered species is listed in Russian Red Data Book (documenting rare and endangered species of animals, plants and fungi that exist within the territory of the Russian Federation), as well as in Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES).

The wild population was already rare at the time of the first scientific characterization in 1879 by Nikolay Przewalski and by 1960s it already became extinct in the wild. There have been several attempts to restore the population through captive breeding in European zoos in order to later reintroduce it to its native habitat. According to the data in the International breed registry, today there are around 8 000 individuals.

Early sequencing studies of DNA revealed several genetic characteristics of Przewalski's horse that differ from what is seen in modern domestic horses, supporting the status of Przewalski's horse as a remnant wild population not derived from domestic horses. It also has 66 chromosomes, compared to 64 in all other horse species.

Przewalski's horse is stockily built in comparison to domesticated horses, with shorter legs, a longer dock and shorter hair.

The author of the photos: Natalia Soudets, expert at Russian Nature Reserves Centre of Ministry of Natural Resources of the Russian Federation. She has been delegated with the mission or photo registering the reintroduction of the species into the wild. The majority of photos have never been exhibited before.