History of the Horse Flashcards
give the scientific name of the true horse
equus caballus
give the zoological classification for horses
kingdom: animalia
phylum: chordata
class: mammalia
order: perissodactyla
family: equidae
genus: equus
what does perissodactyla, the order of horses, mean?
odd number of toes; horses only have one toe
what is the earliest forerunner of the present day horse?
eohippus
describe the eohippus, in general and give size
small, primitive horse, about 20 inches (approx one foot tall) or the size of a fox
how many toes were on the front and hind feet of the eohippus?
front feet: four functional toes
hind feet: three toes
what do the teeth of the eohippus suggest about its diet versus modern horses?
teeth suggest was a browser as opposed to moder horse grazers
what happened to the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th digits of the eohippus as they became horses?
3rd digit became the moder hoof
2nd and 4th digits became splint bones (metacarpals 1 and 2)
what was the eohippus name changed to and why?
Hyracotherium, because looked like Hyrax rodent
when did the eohippis/hyracotherium version of the horse exist and where?
about 50 million years ago in europe and north america
what version of the horse came after the eohippus/hyracotherium and when did it exist? describe its size
mesohippus; existed 35 million years ago; about double the size of eohippus so 24 inches or 2 feet tall
describe the toes of the mesohippus
3 toes on the front feet with a strengthened central toe
what do the teeth of the mesohippus suggest about its diet?
teeth suggest was adapting to eat grass
what is another name for the mesohippus version of the horse?
miohippus
what version of the horse came after meso/miohippus, when did it exist, and where? describe its size
merychippus, existed 15-17 million years ago in North america; slightly larger than meso/miohippus at 35-40 inches tall
describe what the teeth suggest about merychippus
developed grinding teeth; so adapted to grazing plains grasses and was the beginning of the grazing horse of today
describe the behavior of the merychippus version of the horse
increasingly gregarious, lived in herds
describe the toes of the merychippus (2)
- lateral toes were diminished and no longer reached the ground
- main toe thickened and hardened for traveling fast on dry ground
what was the first “ruminant” verion of the horse and how do we know?
merychippus; its digestive tract changed as it diet changed to become hindgut fermenters as adapted to plains grasses
why did the central toe of the merychippus harden and strengthen for fast travel on dry ground?
they lived in open plains so were subject to more predation
what was a new feature of merychippus grinding teeth that is still observed today?
hipsadons; teeth keep growing and growing and must be ground down somehow
what version of the horse came after the merychippus, when and where did it live, and what is it known as (2)?
pliohippus; known as the first true monodactyl and the final model of the horse in north america, 5-10 million years ago
what did the hoof of the pliohippus evolve from?
continued over-development of the middle toe
where did the pliohippus spread? (4)
- south america
- asia
- europe
- africa
when was the final evolutionary stage of Equus observed?
2 million years ago, after pliohippus
give the order of the evolutionary stages of the horse (5)
- eohippus/hyracotherium
- meso/miohippus
- merychippus
- pliohippus
- equus
give the order of heights in meters of each evolutionary stage of the horse
- eohippus/hyracotherium: 0.4 meters
- meso/miohippus: 0.6 meters
- merychippus: 1.0meters
- pliohippus: 1.0 meters
- equus: 1.6 meters
describe the toes of each evolutionary stage of the horse
- eohippus/hyracotherium: 4-toed hoof, well spread for walking on the ground
- meso/miohippus: three toes, one toe lost for moving faster over dry groung
- merychippus: middle toe developed into a hoof to run faster
- pliohippus: other toes lost as only middle hoof used
- equus: single hoof runs quickly over hard ground
describe the head shape change as horses moved throuh evolutionary stages
as teeth changed, skull elongated
what happened to horses 8,000 years ago and why?
equus became extinct in the western hemisphere; no one knows why
when did horses return to the wester hemisphere?
when spanish brought horses to the new world in the 1400’s
why do animals change evolutionarily?
because their environment changes
do all evolutionary changes occur at the same time? what does the order of changes depend on?
nope; depends on ecological pressure
what other species of Equus developed along with the horse? (2)
- zebras
- donkeys
what 4 major changes occured in the horse from hyracotherium/eohippus to Equus?
- reduced number of toes
- increased size of cheek teeth
- lengthening of face
- increase in body size
what is the oldest species of horse still in existence?
Przewalski’s horse
when and where were Przewalski’s horses discovered and by who?
discovered in Mongolia in 1879 by a Russian Captain (Przewalski)
describe Przewalski’s horses (height, color)
12-14 hands; short, upright mane; Dun color, so dark dorsal stripe and dark legs
when did domestication of the hrose occur?
5,000-6,000 years ago
before domestication what were horses used for and how?
hunted for food by running them until fatigued enough to catch and kill
how did domestication of horses begin? (3)
- tame horses were kept for food
- then later used a pack animals until
- the first horsesw were used as draft animals in 3000-2000 BC
when were yokes and bits developed?
1500BC
what is a yoke?
a big loop on top of the horse that had reins to attach the horse to whatever it was hauling
what is a snaffle?
a type of bit
what are the two types of snaffles? how do they work to steer the horse?
- snaffle bit: uses direct pressure
- curb bit: uses leverage, is a harsher bit than the snaffle
when was cavalry first developed? what was it super important for
1,000BC; was super important for the Roman army, which existed from the time of Christ to 450 AD
during what period and when use of horses on a large scale in agriculture begin?
in the middle ages, from 476-1450AD
what is the phrase Tally Ho used for today?
fox hunting
what did the phrase Tally Ho originate from? what was it used for and when?
Ty a Hilluat; used to warn deer hunters that deer had been roused and the hunt could begin; began when William the Conqueror brought deer hunting to Englad in 1066
what and when was the renaissance?
a time of rebirth with a zeal for discovery from 1450-1650
what 3 things happened regarding horses during the renaissance?
- scientific study of the anatomy of the horse
- training horses became a discplined art
- horses assumed a more prominent role in the transportation of goods and people
