Brumbies of the Night
2018
How do we balance the history of former generations with the need to conserve fragile ecosystems in need of protection for the future?
Brumbies of the Night takes its title from Elyne Mitchell’s classic Silver Brumby series. First published in 1958 it became part of existing folklore immortalizing brumbies of the Snowy Mountains, at one with the landscape in which they roam, enmeshed in its identity.
Brumbies of the Night, 2018, oil on linen, 45 x 45 cm
Brumbies of the Night
I loved reading Elyne Mitchell’s classic Silver Brumby series to my children when they were younger, I could picture and feel the landscape of these stories and was bewitched and entranced with the mythology she created.
While I grew up in the small town of Cooma in the Snowy Mountains region of NSW, I did not read these novels myself as a child, however tales of the Man from Snowy River were always evident in the region’s history. The presence of wild brumbies, stories of the Alpine wilderness and the making of the Snowy Mountains Scheme, were configured together in the identity of the Kosciuszko region.
Today though, the romanticisim of wild horses in the mountains, is marred by the detrimental impact they have on the environment.
Brumby numbers have escalated and in 2018 debate had been running wild regarding a proposed cull of the Snowy Mountains herds, pitting ecological and heritage concerns against each other.
The Kosciuszko Wild Horse Heritage Bill 2018, declared protection from culling in NSW. However the questions remain: which is the more significant part of our heritage – the threatened ecosystem and endangered species of our natural environment, or the feral animal which by history and folklore has been elevated to iconic status equal to or greater than species indigenous to that environment?
As hard hooved animals, the brumbies cause significant damage to streams and bogs, and destruction of habitat for other species such as the endangered Southern Corroboree Frog and Alpine Water Skink. The elevated numbers of brumby herds and their destructive footprint, are detrimental to conservation efforts for both flora and fauna, particularly in regard to managing already fragile and endangered species in a changing climate and at times severe weather conditions.
The welfare of large horse herds are also a major concern: during the long periods of severe drought experienced in the region, the threat of mass starvation would be a real issue if herd numbers are allowed to escalate unmonitored. Even without drought, if herds numbers are allowed to grow, the food sources available will not be able to maintain them and further destroying the habitats of native animals.
How do we balance the need to protect and conserve for future generations, while preserving our cultural and historic sentiments?
Proposed culling or removal of horses to reduce numbers to manageable and less destructive herd size, seeks a humane solution to do so with consideration for herds and food sources while being able to implement and maintain important conservation of fragile areas and species.
I will still continue to be enamoured with the Silver Brumby series and I love the alpine wilderness of the Snowy Mountains. I think it is possible to understand both the historical and cultural sentiment of horses in the region and be understanding of how crucial it is to conserve and protect the native species and habitats without delay.