Horses are the best known equines.
The Latin word equinus came to Spanish as equine . This term can be used as an adjective to refer to everything linked to the horse and as a noun to refer specifically to an animal that belongs to the so-called equine species (which includes the horse).
Equines or equids are part of the group of perissodactyls , whose specimens are corpulent, have an odd number of fingers - the middle finger being the one with the greatest development - and have hooves at the end of their extremities. What characterizes equines, and differentiates them from the rest of the perissodactyls, is that each limb ends in a single finger .
Types of equine
Currently only one genus of equine survives, called Equus , which emerged in the Quaternary period about 2.59 million years ago. But a long time ago there were other extinct genera, which are known today thanks to the discovery of fossils in different places.
Various species of horses , zebras and donkeys ( donkeys ) are the current exponents of the genus Equus and, therefore, of equines in general. While zebras live in the wild, donkeys and horses were domesticated by humans, although some undomesticated species persist.
Beyond their differences, all equines share characteristics, such as having elongated legs that end in a single finger covered by the hoof (a large nail). They also have a slender body.
The horse
The best known equine is the horse . It is a herbivorous animal with a long neck with manes (bristles) in its posterior area.
The female horse is called a mare . The offspring, meanwhile, are called fillies or fillies (when they are female ) and foals or colts ( males ).
Among horses, zebras stand out for their stripes.
The domestication of this horse took place around the year 3600 BC on the Asian continent. Man uses horses as a pack animal or means of transportation and in different sporting activities (horse riding, racing or turf , etc.). Even in many countries its meat is consumed.
It is possible to recognize many horse breeds , such as the Arabian horse , the Andalusian , the Breton , the Creole , the Frisian and the Peruvian Paso . According to the coat (the color of the coat), on the other hand, you can distinguish between chestnut, chestnut and gray horses , among many others.
Donkeys and zebras, other types of equine
The donkey or donkey is a horse that is less strong and faster than the horse and is generally smaller in size, but more resistant and long-lived. Their use as pack animals is common in rural areas, although in recent decades they have been replaced by machines .
The zebra stands out for its white stripes on a black background. Unlike horses and donkeys, it has not been successfully domesticated.
It should be noted that there are several equine hybrids . In this sense we can name the mule (cross between a donkey and a mare), the burdegano (horse and donkey), the cebrallo (zebra and mare) and the zebrasno (donkey and zebra).