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Table of Contents
Introduction
Introduction
Ecological Benefits of Wild Ass
Ecological Benefits of Wild Ass
Biodiversity
Biodiversity
Donkeys Dig Watering Holes
Donkeys Dig Watering Holes
One research team "... saw 59 other vertebrate species at the wells, 57 of which were recorded drinking from the wells. Other species that they caught on camera visiting the wells included mule deer, bobcats, Woodhouse’s scrub jay, and javelinas. The team even spotted some river tree species sprouting from abandoned wells, indicating they also serve a role as plant nurseries.
The researchers also found some riparian tree species (i.e., those that grow alongside water courses) sprouting from abandoned wells, indicating a wider environmental benefit. "
Rewilding & Conservation Grazing
Rewilding & Conservation Grazing
In Africa and Asia where onager and wild ass populations have dwindled or even disappeared, conservationists are bringing back large grazers to help boost biodiversity, and graze invasive plants or helping to control local biomes so that grasslands or forests don't become overgrown.
Food for Predators
Food for Predators
Both native wild ass, and invasive feral donkeys can provide food for large, apex predators, which may help in the re-establishment of these species where they are being re-introduced, as well as providing adequate for existing populations to grow.
Problems with Feral Donkeys
Problems with Feral Donkeys
Fast Population Growth
Fast Population Growth
"Invasive burros, Equua asinus, are often called donkeys and can be found throughout the backcountry in Death Valley. They are an introduced species that originally descended from the African wild ass and are NOT native to North America. This means that Death Valley did not always have burros present. Invasive burro populations grow at approximately 20% per year. These nonnative animals cause damage to native vegetation, spring ecosystems and compete with native wildlife, such as bighorn sheep and desert tortoise, for limited resources." - National Parks Service: Invasive Burros
Impact on Plant Life
Impact on Plant Life
Overgrazing & Trampling
Overgrazing & Trampling
Donkeys are known to trample rare plants and overgraze certain plant species. This can be beneficial when it opens up new pathways for other wildlife (especially to food and water sources), but a serious problem when it threatens the existence of certain plants or the animals who traditionally feed on those plants.
"The donkey presence in desert wetlands was associated with striking changes to the local plant life. “These sites where they're there all day, they're trampling and eating the vegetation,” says Lundgren. “It really strongly leads to a lot of bare open ground, a lot of dung and then a really strong reduction in plant cover.”" - Smithsonian Mag: Cougars are Killing Feral Donkeys and That's Good for Wetlands
Types of Wild Ass
Types of Wild Ass
African Wild Ass
African Wild Ass
"The African wild ass (Equus africanus) or African wild donkey is a wild member of the horse family, Equidae.[3] This species is thought to be the ancestor of the domestic donkey (Equus asinus), which is sometimes placed within the same species.[4] They live in the deserts and other arid areas of the Horn of Africa, in Eritrea, Ethiopia and Somalia. It formerly had a wider range north and west into Sudan, Egypt, and Libya. It is Critically Endangered, with about 570 existing in the wild." - Wikipedia: African Wild Ass
Atlas or Algerian Wild Ass
Atlas or Algerian Wild Ass
"The Atlas wild ass (Equus africanus atlanticus), also known as Algerian wild ass, is a purported extinct subspecies of the African wild ass that was once found across North Africa and parts of the Sahara.[1]
It was last represented in a villa mural ca. 300 AD in Bona, Algeria, and may have become extinct as a result of Roman sport hunting.[2]"
Nubian Wild Ass
Nubian Wild Ass
"The Nubian wild ass (Equus africanus africanus) is the nominate subspecies of African wild ass, and one of the ancestors of the domestic donkey, which was domesticated about 6,000 years ago.[3][4] It is presumed to be extinct, though two populations potentially survive on the Caribbean island of Bonaire and in Gebel Elba." - Wikipedia: Nubian Wild Ass
Somali Wild Ass
Somali Wild Ass
"It is found in Somalia, the Southern Red Sea region of Eritrea, and the Afar Region of Ethiopia. The legs of the Somali wild ass are striped, resembling those of its relatives, the zebras." - Wikipedia: Somali Wild Ass
"A conservation project (mainly supported by Zoo Basel) in Eritrea counted (before 2014) 47 Somali wild asses living in the mountains between the Buri Peninsula and the Dallol Depression, which is within the larger Danakil Depression, near Eritrea's border with Ethiopia.[21][22][23][24]
As mentioned above, a protected population of the Somali wild ass exists in the Yotvata Hai-Bar Nature Reserve. This Israeli reserve was established in 1968 with the view to bolster populations of endangered desert species." - Wikipedia: Somali Wild Ass
Asiatic Wild Ass or Onagers
Asiatic Wild Ass or Onagers
European Wild Ass
European Wild Ass
Range: Europe, Western Asia
Indian Wild Ass
Indian Wild Ass
Range: Southern Afghanistan, India, southeast Iran and Pakistan
"The Indian wild ass's range once extended from western India, southern Pakistan, i.e. provinces of Sindh and Baluchistan, Afghanistan, and south-eastern Iran. Today, its last refuge lies in the Indian Wild Ass Sanctuary, Little Rann of Kutch and its surrounding areas of the Great Rann of Kutch in the Gujarat state of India. The animal, however, is also seen in the districts of Surendranagar, Banaskantha, Mehsana, and other Kutch districts. Saline deserts (rann), arid grasslands and shrublands are its preferred environments." - Wikipedia: Indian Wild Ass
Kiang or Tibetan Wild Ass
Kiang or Tibetan Wild Ass
"The largest of all the wild asses, the Kiang is native to the Tibetan Plateau. Also referred to as the Tibetan Wild Ass, Khyang or Gorkhar, its range is currently restricted to the montane and alpine grasslands that stretch across China, Nepal, India and Pakistan. Several subspecies (Western, Southern and Eastern Kiang) occur within its broad range as their distribution has become increasingly fragmented. The current global population estimate of Kiang is 60,000-70,000 individuals, with up to 90% of them located in protected areas along the China/Nepal border." - Wildlife woods: Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them - Equids
Mongolian Wild Ass
Mongolian Wild Ass
Range: Northern China, eastern Kazakhstan, Mongolia, and Siberia
Syrian Wild Ass
Syrian Wild Ass
Range: Western Iran, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Syria, and Turkey
"The Syrian wild ass (Equus hemionus hemippus), less commonly known as a hemippe,[2] an achdari,[3][4] or a Mesopotamian or Syrian onager,[5] is an extinct subspecies of onager native to the Arabian Peninsula and surrounding areas." - Wikipedia: Syrian Wild Ass
Turkmenian Kulan
Turkmenian Kulan
Range: Northeastern Iran, Northern Afghanistan, western China, Kazakhstan, southern Siberia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Ukraine, Northern Mongolia, and Uzbekistan
"The Turkmenian kulan (Equus hemionus kulan), also called Transcaspian wild ass,[3] Turkmenistani onager or simply the kulan, is a subspecies of onager (Asiatic wild ass) native to Central Asia. It was declared Endangered in 2016.[1]
The species's population had recently been in decline in the country while it slowly increases in reintroduction sites. The Turkmenian kulan has been reintroduced to Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan, as well as Israel, where the subspecies are hybridizing with Persian onagers in the wild.
Previously in 2005, the population was estimated at 1,295-1,345 in Turkmenistan. No other data existed on the condition of the Turkmenistan populations, but hope remained that small groups of animals still resided in inaccessible areas around Badkhyz, and were thriving in the West Kopetdagh (Sumbar-Chandyr Valley) and Ustyurt Plateau around Lake Sarakamish.[4] However, certain fragmented populations of Transcaspian wild ass are currently on the rise to even more than 2,000 individuals in the wild.[5] It is also estimated that over 6,000 kulans live in Central Asia.[6] In 2017, there are 3,900 kulans in total roaming in Kazakhstan, of which the largest Kazakh population (3,400) reside in Altyn-Emel National Park.[7]" - Wikipedia: Turkmenian Kulan
Feral Donkeys
Feral Donkeys
Unlike wild ass or onager, feral donkeys or "burros" are donkeys that were transported by humans to new areas where the animals are not native. This can cause serious ecological problems, which is why countries including the USA and Australia are working hard to control their numbers and minimize their donkey's ecological impact.
Oceana
Oceana
Australia
Australia
Australia has the largest feral ass population in the world.
"Donkeys were brought to Australia in 1866 for use as pack and haulage animals.[1] Up until that point, the Australians had been using the horse as their main mode of transportation. However, problems arose when the horses used in transportation began to become sickened by some of the native poisonous plants. When donkeys proved to be invulnerable to the plants that were making the horses sick, more donkeys were brought in. Escape was common because of the lack of fences, and there were reported herds of donkeys by the 1920s. In western Australia in 1949, there were enough donkeys for them to officially be declared a pest.[1] There were almost 5 million feral donkeys in Australia in 2005.[2] " - Wikipedia: Feral Donkeys in Australia
"The ecological effects of feral donkeys in Australia are debated; Some researchers claim that the donkeys’ ecological niche, like that of other introduced large herbivores, may correspond to lost niches of extinct Australian megafauna and benefit the native ecosystem.[3]
There are some negative effects that feral donkeys may have on the environment: they may spread weeds by carrying seeds in their hair and faeces, they may damage vegetation through overeating, they may foul watering holes in the drought season, and they can cause erosion with their hard hooves.[1] These damages, particularly those to watering holes, may play a role in the extinction of native plants and animals. Feral donkeys also affect local agriculture, as they sometimes overeat pasture grasses and destroy fences. They are also known to infect domestic animals with diseases." - Wikipedia: Feral Donkeys in Australia
"Since feral donkeys in Australia are considered a pest, they are often controlled by being mustered. Helicopters with highly trained and accredited shooters have replaced this technique in places where the terrain makes mustering too difficult.[4] Also seeing some limited use is fertility control. This, however, is difficult with large numbers of undomesticated animals and it is unknown whether this technique will make a difference on such a large number of animals.[1] Some good cattle breeders are using donkeys against dingos and foxes." - Wikipedia: Feral Donkeys in Australia
North America
North America
"North American donkeys constitute approximately 0.1% of the worldwide donkey population.[1][a] Donkeys were first transported from Europe to the New World in the fifteenth century during the Second Voyage of Christopher Columbus,[2]: 179 and subsequently spread south and west into the lands that would become México.[3] They first reached (what is now) the United States in the late seventeenth century.[4]: 11 Donkeys arrived in large numbers in the western United States during the gold rushes of the nineteenth century, highly regarded as pack animals and for working in mines and ore-grinding mills.[5] From about 1785, some select larger donkeys were imported from Europe to the eastern part of the continent.[4]: 9
There are no true-breeding North American donkey breeds.[6] Breed societies in Canada and the United States register donkeys, according to their size, as miniature, standard or mammoth donkeys.[3][7][8] These are reported as breeds to the Domestic Animal Diversity database, a division of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, by the National Animal Germplasm Program (of the Agricultural Research Service of the US Department of Agriculture), as are the burros (Spanish for 'donkey') – a feral population of desert-dwelling donkeys in the southwestern U.S. (mainly Arizona) – and the spotted, a color breed.[9]" - Wikipedia: North American Donkeys
Canada
Canada
Mexico
Mexico
USA
USA
Projects & Programs
Projects & Programs
Europe
Europe
Ukraine
Ukraine
Rewilding Europe: Kulan Comeback: Wild Donkeys Set to Roam Free in the Danube Delta Region Once Again "As part of a vision for a wilder Danube Delta, a herd of 20 kulan were translocated yesterday to the Tarutino Steppe in Ukraine. Their eventual release into the wild will enhance biodiversity, reduce wildfire risk and boost nature-based tourism."
Resources & Guides
Resources & Guides
Asia
Asia
Turkmenistan
Turkmenistan
Class Materials
Class Materials
BLM: Educational Resources "The history, ecology and management of wild horses and burros on public lands are fascinating topics for all ages. The BLM encourages students, teachers and anybody else interested in learning about wild horses and burros to explore these resources and discover why these living legends are so ingrained in the cultural heritage of the United States, and why management is so important to their wellbeing.
Additional BLM educational resources can be found in Classrooms Investigations."
Europe
Europe
Ukraine
Ukraine
Askania-Nova Biosphere Reserve in southern Ukraine.
Rewilding Ukraine "Rewilding Europe and Rewilding Ukraine are thrilled to announce that a herd of 20 kulan (a wild relative of the domesticated donkey) were yesterday released into a large fenced enclosure on the Tarutino Steppe, an 8000-hectare swathe of grassland on the northern edge of the Danube Delta in Ukraine. The animals (8 males and 12 females) will eventually be allowed to roam free on the steppe later this year or early next, returning to an environment where they have been absent for hundreds of years.
A subspecies of Asiatic wild ass, the kulan (Equus hemionus kulan) once ranged across eastern Europe, the Middle East and Central Asia – from the Mediterranean to the east of Mongolia. Over the last two centuries, the impact of overhunting and habitat loss has seen their range shrink by over 95 per cent. Although the animal is doing relatively well in Mongolia, it only persists in small isolated populations in Turkmenistan, Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan. Kulan are on the IUCN Red List."
North America
North America
USA
USA
American Wild Horse Foundation "our Mission is to create a responsible and sustainable model that will preserve wild horses for generations to come. Inherent in our Mission is our belief that the magnificence and wonder of our wild horses belongs to all Americans.
Each of us should have the ability to access, learn about and interact with our national treasure. Moreover, we suspect that every American may find that their own cultural heritage is carried in a wild horse herd roaming free on America’s range."BLM: Wild Horse and Burro Program "The Bureau of Land Management manages and protects wild horses and burros on 26.9 million acres of public lands across 10 Western states as part of its mission to administer public lands for a variety of uses. The Wild Horse and Burro Program's goal is to manage healthy wild horses and burros on healthy public rangelands."
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