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Comment by bilsbie | Hacker News Reader

What about wild ponies?

The Mustangs are an invasive species in the west and their population growth is devastating the local flora. "60 Minutes" ran an episode about it recently.

But we extincted bison. Don’t we need a grazing species in these areas?

> But we extincted bison.

I believe the word you are looking for is extirpated. They didn't go extinct, they just aren't there anymore.

> Don’t we need a grazing species in these areas?

Suppose that depends on your idea of what those areas should be doing.

You could say the previously bison populated areas have been replaced with their bovine cousins or the alfalfa to feed them.

they don't sting so they're fine. Also in North America horses lived here 10kya before going extinct so at least here they're resuming an ecological role that was once occupied by their ancestors

Also x2, horses originated in North America! They came to eurasia over the bering land bridge!

So the horses that were released (and have thrived!) in north america are originally north american horses. It's part of why they do so well-- they can eat all of the native brush here. Whereas if a cow gets loose in n. america it's gonna poison itself.

https://awionline.org/content/wild-horses-native-north-ameri...

https://returntofreedom.org/new-research-proves-yet-again-th...

True, but the way their populations are managed now isn’t ecologically sustainable.

That is to say, their natural predators are either not present, not present in large enough numbers, or forbidden by law to hunt them.[0]

[0] https://priceonomics.com/when-americans-ate-horse-meat/

10 thousands of years is enough to change the ecosystems. Also, the predators that kept them in check are gone.

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