New foal N6BMT-FQ with his dam N6BMT, “Jojo”/NPS

With some births offsetting some deaths, the number of horses roaming wild at Assateague Island National Seashore in Maryland remains relatively steady, with 79 counted in September.

Those 79 horses are broken down to 21 stallions and 58 mares. The third foal of the year, colt N6BMT-FQ, was born in September to N6BMT-F, “Jojo.”

The National Park Service completes a census of the horse population in Maryland in February, March, May, July, September, and November. Managed as a wildlife population, the Assateague horses are free to roam over approximately 27 miles of the barrier island and can be difficult to find at times.

During each census, horses are identified by their distinguishing characteristics, mapped, and counted. Individual horses that are not observed during multiple census periods are presumed dead. In addition to the census, the National Park Service has initiated a genetic study to develop more detailed information describing the genetic status and condition of the horse herd in support of the long-term fertility control program initiated in 1994. 

Park spokeswoman Liz Davis said Tuesday that the goal is to maintain a horse population between 80 and 100 individuals.

“I reaize we’ve dipped below that, but based on research, it’s still considered a very healthy herd,” she said during a phone call.

Eighty horses would have been counted had an 18-year-old bay stallion not been struck and killed by a vehicle on Maryland 611 earlier this month. Davis had no update on whether any charges had been filed in connection with the incident.

"We have had deaths this year, but they were particularly old mares and old stallions," she said. "They had lived their lives. That’s one of the reasons the population has dipped below our target range, by one or two."

Because the seashore's horse population is considered to be "aging," forced contraception has not been used on mares since 2016, the spokeswoman said.