RALEIGH, N.C. (WNCN) — A yearly update about wild horses on a North Carolina island was released on Tuesday.
Shackleford Banks, the southern-most barrier island in Cape Lookout National Seashore, is home to more than 120 wild horses, the Tuesday report said.
The oldest horse on the island is a 28-year-old mare. Additionally, 13 foals were born in the spring and summer, bringing the total horses on the island to 124.
The herd is 61 percent female and 39 percent male. Of the oldest horses (18 years of age and older), 21 are female and 1 is male.
Cape Lookout National Seashore and the Foundation for Shackleford Horses said that the most important factor in protecting the wild horses is public education.
Shackleford Banks, south of the Town of Beaufort and Harkers Island, is the southernmost island in the Cape Lookout National Seashore between Barden’s Inlet to the east and Beaufort Inlet to the west.
Shackleford Banks is approximately eight miles long and ranges from less than a half mile wide to nearly 1.5 miles wide where the eastern marsh islands are included.
