The Konik or Polish Konik, pl, konik polski, is a Polish

breed A breed is a specific group of domestic animals having homogeneous appearance (phenotype), homogeneous behavior, and/or other characteristics that distinguish it from other organisms of the same species. In literature, there exist several slight ...

pony A pony is a type of small horse ('' Equus ferus caballus''). Depending on the context, a pony may be a horse that is under an approximate or exact height at the withers, or a small horse with a specific conformation and temperament. Compared ...

. There are semi-

feral A feral () animal or plant is one that lives in the wild but is descended from domesticated individuals. As with an introduced species, the introduction of feral animals or plants to non-native regions may disrupt ecosystems and has, in some ...

populations in some regions. They are usually mouse dun or striped dun in

color Color ( American English) or colour (British English) is the visual perceptual property deriving from the spectrum of light interacting with the photoreceptor cells of the eyes. Color categories and physical specifications of color are ass ...

. The Bilgoray, pl, konik biłgorajski, of south-eastern Poland is a sub-type of the breed influenced by

Arab The Arabs (singular: Arab; singular ar, عَرَبِيٌّ, DIN 31635: , , plural ar, عَرَب, DIN 31635: , Arabic pronunciation: ), also known as the Arab people, are an ethnic group mainly inhabiting the Arab world in Western Asia, ...

and

Thoroughbred The Thoroughbred is a horse breed best known for its use in horse racing. Although the word ''thoroughbred'' is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thoroughbred breed. Thoroughbreds are co ...

blood; it is close to

extinction Extinction is the termination of a kind of organism or of a group of kinds (taxon), usually a species. The moment of extinction is generally considered to be the death of the last individual of the species, although the capacity to breed an ...

. The extinct Sweyki or Schweike sub-type of

East Prussia East Prussia ; german: Ostpreißen, label= Low Prussian; pl, Prusy Wschodnie; lt, Rytų Prūsija was a province of the Kingdom of Prussia from 1773 to 1829 and again from 1878 (with the Kingdom itself being part of the German Empire from 1 ...

contributed to the development of the

Trakehner Trakehner is a light warmblood breed of horse, originally developed at the East Prussian state stud farm in the town of Trakehnen from which the breed takes its name. The state stud ( :de:Hauptgestüt Trakehnen) was established in 1731 an ...

. The word "konik" means 'small horse'. It may be used in a wider sense to describe the Polish Konik and other similar breeds, among them the

Hutsul The Hutsuls (sometimes the spelling variant: Gutsuls; uk, Гуцули, translit=Hutsuly; pl, Huculi, Hucułowie; ro, huțuli) are an ethnic group spanning parts of western Ukraine and Romania (i.e. parts of Bukovina and Maramureș). The ...

of the Carpathian Mountains, the Polesian of

Belarus Belarus,, , ; alternatively and formerly known as Byelorussia (from Russian ). officially the Republic of Belarus,; rus, Республика Беларусь, Respublika Belarus. is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by R ...

and the Žemaitukas of Lithuania.

Etymology

The Polish word ''konik'' (plural ''koniki'') is the

diminutive A diminutive is a root word that has been modified to convey a slighter degree of its root meaning, either to convey the smallness of the object or quality named, or to convey a sense of intimacy or endearment. A ( abbreviated ) is a word-forma ...

of ''koń'', the Polish word for "horse" (sometimes confused with ''kuc, kucyk'' meaning "pony"). It means 'small horse'.

History

The Konik is a Polish

horse breed A horse breed is a selectively bred population of domesticated horses, often with pedigrees recorded in a breed registry. However, the term is sometimes used in a broader sense to define landrace animals of a common phenotype located within a lim ...

descending from very hardy horses from the Biłgoraj region. These horses had a predominantly dun colour, but also

black Black is a color which results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without hue, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness. Black and white have of ...

and chestnut horses were present in the population. Some researchers claim these foundation animals were

hybrid Hybrid may refer to: Science * Hybrid (biology), an offspring resulting from cross-breeding ** Hybrid grape, grape varieties produced by cross-breeding two ''Vitis'' species ** Hybridity, the property of a hybrid plant which is a union of two dif ...

s with

wild horse The wild horse (''Equus ferus'') is a species of the genus ''Equus'', which includes as subspecies the modern domesticated horse (''Equus ferus caballus'') as well as the endangered Przewalski's horse (''Equus ferus przewalskii''). The Europe ...

breeding that had been sold to farmers by the zoo in

Zamość Zamość (; yi, זאמאשטש, Zamoshtsh; la, Zamoscia) is a historical city in southeastern Poland. It is situated in the southern part of Lublin Voivodeship, about from Lublin, from Warsaw. In 2021, the population of Zamość was 62,021. ...

in 1806, which were bred to local domesticated

draft horse A draft horse (US), draught horse (UK) or dray horse (from the Old English ''dragan'' meaning "to draw or haul"; compare Dutch ''dragen'' and German ''tragen'' meaning "to carry" and Danish ''drage'' meaning "to draw" or "to fare"), less oft ...

s.Tadeusz Jezierski, Zbigniew Jaworski: ''Das Polnische Konik. Die Neue Brehm-Bücherei Bd. 658'', Westarp Wissenschaften, Hohenwarsleben 2008, However, genetic studies now contradict the view that the Konik is a surviving form of Eastern European

, commonly called the

tarpan The term tarpan (''Equus ferus ferus'') refers to free-ranging horses of the Russian steppe from the 18th to the 20th century. It is generally unknown whether those horses represented genuine wild horses, feral domestic horses or hybrids. The las ...

, nor is it closely related to them. The Konik shares

mitochondrial DNA Mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA or mDNA) is the DNA located in mitochondria, cellular organelles within eukaryotic cells that convert chemical energy from food into a form that cells can use, such as adenosine triphosphate (ATP). Mitochondrial DN ...

with many other domesticated horse breeds and their

Y-DNA The Y chromosome is one of two sex chromosomes (allosomes) in therian mammals, including humans, and many other animals. The other is the X chromosome. Y is normally the sex-determining chromosome in many species, since it is the presence or abse ...

is nearly identical.Jansen et al. 2002: Mitochondrial DNA and the origins of the domestic horseCieslak et al. 2010: Origin and History of Mitochondrial DNA lineages in domestic horses During World War I, these horses were important transport animals for Russian and German troops and were called ''Panje'' horses. In 1923, Tadeusz Vetulani, an agriculturalist from

Kraków Kraków (), or Cracow, is the second-largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in Lesser Poland Voivodeship, the city dates back to the seventh century. Kraków was the official capital of Poland until 1596 ...

, started to get interested in the'' Panje'' horses, a

landrace A landrace is a domesticated, locally adapted, often traditional variety of a species of animal or plant that has developed over time, through adaptation to its natural and cultural environment of agriculture and pastoralism, and due to isolati ...

of Biłgoraj and coined the name “Konik” (Polish for “small horse”), which is now established as the common name for the breed. During the 1920s, several public and private studs were created to conserve this animal. In 1936, Vetulani opened a Konik reserve in the

Białowieża Forest Białowieża Forest; lt, Baltvyžių giria; pl, Puszcza Białowieska ; russian: Беловежская пуща, Belovezhskaya Pushcha is a forest on the border between Belarus and Poland. It is one of the last and largest remaining pa ...

. He was convinced that if horses were exposed to natural conditions, they would redevelop their original

phenotype In genetics, the phenotype () is the set of observable characteristics or traits of an organism. The term covers the organism's morphology or physical form and structure, its developmental processes, its biochemical and physiological prop ...

. While Vetulani's experiments are well-known and widely publicized, Piotr Daszkiewicz (2003), "Konik Polski."
/ref>http://www.staff.amu.edu.pl/~vetulani/tadeusz/pl/index.html an
translation
/ref> his stock actually had only a minor influence on the modern Konik population. However, World War II marked the end of Vetulani’s "

breeding back Breeding back is a form of artificial selection by the deliberate selective breeding of domestic (but not exclusively) animals, in an attempt to achieve an animal breed with a phenotype that resembles a wild type ancestor, usually one that has ...

" project. Part of his stock was moved to Popielno, where they continued to live in semi

conditions. Popielno became the breed’s main stud during the 1950s, but the herd was also preserved by buying animals from Germany. Between the two world wars, the German brothers Heinz and Lutz Heck crossed stallions of

Przewalski's horse Przewalski's horse (, , (Пржевальский ), ) (''Equus ferus przewalskii'' or ''Equus przewalskii''), also called the takhi, Mongolian wild horse or Dzungarian horse, is a rare and endangered horse originally native to the steppes of Ce ...

with mares of the Konik horse, as well as mares of other breeds such as the

Dülmen pony Dülmen () is a town in the district of Coesfeld, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Geography Dülmen is situated in the south part of the Münsterland area, between the Lippe river to the south, the Baumberge hills to the north and the Ems ri ...

Gotland pony The Gotland Russ or Gotland Pony is an old Swedish breed of pony or small horse. Until the twentieth century it was found only on the small island of Gotland on the south-eastern coast of Sweden. It is now distributed through much of Sweden and ...

, and the Icelandic horse, to create a breed resembling their understanding of the tarpan phenotype. The result is called the

Heck Horse The Heck horse is a horse breed that is claimed to resemble the tarpan (''Equus ferus ferus''), an extinct equine. The breed was created by the German zoologist brothers Heinz Heck and Lutz Heck in an attempt to breed back the tarpan. Althou ...

.Bunzel-Drüke, Finck, Kämmer, Luick, Reisinger, Riecken, Riedl, Scharf & Zimball: ''Wilde Weiden: Praxisleitfaden für Ganzjahresbeweidung in Naturschutz und Landschaftsentwicklung''. Arbeitsgemeinschaft Biologischer Umweltschutz im Kreis Soest e. V. (ABU), Bad Sassendorf-Lohne, 2. Auflage, 2009. Other breeders crossed Koniks with Anglo Arabians or the

to increase their quality as a riding horse.

Characteristics

The breed has a strong and stocky build, small head with a straight profile, and a neck set low out of the chest. The Konik has a deep chest, a thick mane, and the hair coat is blue dun, often colloquially called "mouse-gray". The Konik is short in height, ranging from .Stud-book of Origin of Konik polski breed
. Polski Związek Hodowców Koni (Polish Horse Breeders Association). Accessed 4 December 2013. Minimum heartgirth measurement is , and minimum cannon bone measurement for

mare A mare is an adult female horse or other equine. In most cases, a mare is a female horse over the age of three, and a filly is a female horse three and younger. In Thoroughbred horse racing, a mare is defined as a female horse more than four y ...

s, for

stallion A stallion is a male horse that has not been gelded ( castrated). Stallions follow the conformation and phenotype of their breed, but within that standard, the presence of hormones such as testosterone may give stallions a thicker, "cresty" n ...

s.Księgi stadne
(in Polish). Stadniny Izery. Accessed 4 December 2013. Weight is .Koniki dzisiaj
(in Polish). Stadniny Izery. Accessed 4 December 2013.

Breeding centres and nature reserves

Koniks today are bred either in barns or open reserves and under human guidance. The Konik was bred for a larger shoulder height in past decades, to improve its value as a working horse. A more graceful appearance, especially of the head, was established, as well. Black and sorrel horses have been largely selected out, but still appear on occasion, as do white markings. The simultaneous management of Koniks in both barns and reserves made it possible to compare the health and behaviour of the horses under different circumstances. For example, hoof diseases and hay allergies are more common in Koniks raised in barns than in reserves. In Poland, Koniks currently live on nature reserves at Popielno,

Roztocze National Park __NOTOC__ Roztocze National Park ( pl, Roztoczański Park Narodowy) is a national park in Lublin Voivodeship of southeastern Poland. It protects the most valuable natural areas of the middle part of the Roztocze range. Its current size is , of whi ...

, Stobnica Research Station of the University of Life Sciences in Poznań. They are bred in controlled conditions at a state stud at Popielno, Sieraków. Private breeders currently own 310

s and 90 stallions; the state studs own 120 mares and 50 stallions. As it is claimed to phenotypically resemble the extinct tarpan,} the Konik has also been introduced into

nature reserve A nature reserve (also known as a wildlife refuge, wildlife sanctuary, biosphere reserve or bioreserve, natural or nature preserve, or nature conservation area) is a protected area of importance for flora, fauna, or features of geological or ...

s in other nations. The Netherlands is a big user of Konik horses. One of the first places was the

Oostvaardersplassen The Oostvaardersplassen () is a nature reserve in the Netherlands, managed by the '' Staatsbosbeheer'' (state forestry service). Covering about in the province of Flevoland, it is an experiment in rewilding.Oostvaardersplassen is discussed, for ...

where the biggest herd of free-ranging Konik horses lives in the world, there were once more than 1000 Konik horses there but later a few hundred got transported to reserves in Spain and Belarus.

Etymology

History

Characteristics

Breeding centres and nature reserves

References

Further reading