Horses | |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Class: | Mammalia |
Order: | Perrisodactyla |
Family: | Equidae |
Genus: | Equus |
Horses are one of two extinct subspecies of Equus ferus, or the wild horse. It is an odd-toed ungulate mammal belonging to the taxonomic family Equidae. The horse has evolved over the past 45 to 55 million years from a small multi-toed creature into the large, single-toed animal of today. Humans began to domesticate horses around 4000 BC, and their domestication is believed to have been widespread by 3000 BC. Horses in the subspecies caballus are domesticated, although some domesticated populations live in the wild as feral horses. These feral populations are not true wild horses, as this term is used to describe horses that have never been domesticated, such as the endangered Przewalski's horse, a separate subspecies, and the only remaining true wild horse. There is an extensive, specialized vocabulary used to describe equine-related concepts, covering everything from anatomy to life stages, size, colors, markings, breeds, locomotion, and behavior.
Horses' anatomy enables them to make use of speed to escape predators and they have a well-developed sense of balance and a strong fight-or-flight response. Related to this need to flee from predators in the wild is an unusual trait: horses are able to sleep both standing up and lying down. Female horses, called mares, carry their young for approximately 11 months, and a young horse, called a foal, can stand and run shortly following birth. Most domesticated horses begin training under saddle or in harness between the ages of two and four. They reach full adult development by age five, and have an average lifespan of between 25 and 30 years.
An extremely fake-looking horse prop can be seen in the 1965 movie Frankenstein Conquers the World. It is one of several farm animals that finds itself victim to the appetite of the monster known as Baragon.
Horses were a common mode of transportation in the 31st century reality of the Planet of the Apes television series. Most of the gorilla soldiers seen in the series rode brown horses. General Urko distinguished himself from the others by riding a white horse.
Horses of note[]
See also: Flying horses
Name | Source |
---|---|
Banshee the Horse | Marvel Comics |
Satin the Horse | Marvel Comics |
Stallion of Doom | Marvel Comics |
White Wind | Fawcett Publications |
Appearances[]
Television[]
- American Horror Story: The End - Contaminated horses are pulled off and slaughtered.
- Bionic Woman: Jaime's Mother - Pony in flashback.
- Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Becoming (Part 1) - 2 horses in Galway in 1753 flashback.
- Gotham: They Who Hide Behind Masks - Sofia Falcone riding a horse in Florida.
- Isis: The Seeing Eye Horse
- Isis: The Hitchhikers
- Legends of Tomorrow: Freakshow - Horses at P.T. Barnum's carnival in 1870.
- Preacher: Finish the Song - Riders in the 1881 flashback.
- True Blood: You Smell Like Dinner
- Walking Dead: Rock in the Road - Members of The Kingdom ride up on horses (2).
- Wonder Woman: Death in Disguise - Assassins on horses chase Diana Prince. Wonder Woman uses animal empathy to cause the horses to buck their riders.
Comics[]
- Aquaman 33 - Aqualad dives with a horse off King Pier.
- Arhian: Head Huntress 2 - Arhian rides a horse out of Farnum towards Thaldoon.
- Avengers 48 - Aragorn the winged horse.
- Flash Comics 1 - Prince Khufu's horse and chariot.
- Incredible Hulk 3 - Circus horses used by the Circus of Crime.
- Incredible Hulk Vol 2 180 - Hulk spooks some Canadian horses while stomping through a fence.
- Kull and the Barbarians 3
- Marvel Spotlight 12 - Daimon Hellstrom's three demonic steeds.
- Men's Adventures 26 - Two horses in "The Burning Sands".
- Son of Satan 1 - Daimon Hellstrom's three demonic steeds.
- Spectacular Spider-Man 211 - Kraven's horse in a photograph.
- Strange Combat Tales 4 - Oliver Cromwell's horse.
- Tales to Astonish 52 - Elendil.
- Thor 132 - The Stallion of Doom.
- Walking Dead 19 - Otis riding a horse outside the prison gates.
- Walking Dead 52 - Glenn & Maggie are riding horses when they reunite with Rick.
- Walking Dead 57 - Buttons the horse.
- Walking Dead 61 - Buttons the horse.
- Walking Dead 62 - Buttons the horse.
- Walking Dead 108 - Rick and Jesus first come to The Kingdom on horses.
- Walking Dead 110 - Paul Monroe takes a horse to go find Kal.
- Walking Dead 127 - A team of horses pulling a cart into Alexandria.
- Walking Dead 129 - Ken and Marco wrangle some horses past some walkers. Rick takes a horse to Hilltop.
- Walking Dead 130 - Roamers overwhelm a horse that Marco and Ken are trying to herd back to Hilltop.
- Walking Dead 133 - Joshua attacks Darius and unseats him from his horse.
- Walking Dead 135 - Jesus brings an unconscious Lydia back to Hilltop on the back of a horse.
- Walking Dead 142 - Rick's group ride horses back to Alexandria.
- Walking Dead 150 - Dwight rides a horse from the Sanctuary to Alexandria.
- Walking Dead 156 - Horses at the Whisperer camp.
- Walking Dead 160 - Heath rides a horse to the rescue and saves Vincent from a roamer.
- Walking Dead 161 - Tara rides back to the Sanctuary and leaves her horse with John.
- Walking Dead 162 - Eugene Porter falls off his exhausted horse.
- Walking Dead 163 - Andrea gathers horses as roamers approach the Alexandria Safe-Zone.
- Walking Dead 187 - Siddiq rides a horse to Hilltop. Carl also pulls a horse along.
- Whiz Comics 2 - White Wind the horse.
- Whiz Comics 138 - White Wind the horse.
- Wolverine Vol 2 12 - Burt Corrigan rides a horse into court at his competency hearing.
- Wonder Woman Vol 5 58 - Cadmus the winged horse.
- Wonder Woman Vol 5 59 - Cadmus the winged horse.
Films[]
- Avengers: Endgame - Aragorn, the flying horse.
- Bram Stoker's Dracula - Entourage of hunters en route to Castle Dracula.
- Brides of Dracula
- Curse of Frankenstein, The - Horse-drawn carriage brings priest to jail.
- Dracula (1931) - Carriage with passengers bringing John Harker across the Borgo Pass.
- Horror of Dracula
- Logan - Logan helps round up some stray horses for Will Munson.
- Mummy's Tomb, The
Novels[]
- Needful Things - As he leaves Castle Rock, Leland Gaunt's automobile turns into a horse-drawn carriage.
See also[]
- Appearances of horses
Gallery[]
<gallery> Arhian on horse.jpg Stallion of Doom.png Carriage.jpg <gallery>