 wild horses and plants offers the native seeds thus distributed an advantage due to the high-level of hummus and nutrients in the horse droppings aggregated with the native plant seeds. This unique mutualism between native north American plants and wild horses is of great value in rebuilding soils that have been devastated by catastrophic wildfire through abnormally extreme heat caused by excess ground fuels. The heat generated by these newly evolved super-hot wildfires is sufficient to pasteurize soils to a depth of many inches and volatilize nutrients, which leaves soils permanently damaged and altered in some cases, as we read here.
Of all the large native herbivores that currently roam the American rangelands, horses are the only large grazing herbivores that have a single-stomach simple digestive system. And as we have learned this is very important. This is in stark contrast to herbivores that are ruminants (such as cows), which have very effective digestion as a function of complex stomachs capable of fermentation, which breaks down and digests a greater percentage of grass and plant seeds.
“Ruminants are mammals that are able to acquire nutrients from plant-based food by fermenting it in a specialized stomach prior to digestion, principally through microbial actions. The process typically requires the fermented ingesta (known as cud) to be regurgitated and chewed again. The process of rechewing the cud to further break down plant matter and stimulate digestion is called rumination. The word “ruminant” comes from the Latin ruminare, which means “to chew over again”. The roughly 150 species of ruminants include both domestic and wild species. Ruminating mammals include cattle, goats, sheep, giraffes, yaks, deer, antelope, and some macropods.” – (from Wikipedia)
Clearly, the relationship between the ecosystems of North America and native wild horses is one that is mutually beneficial and is a true mutualism resulting from co-evolution over many millennia. The wild horses are nourished by the native plants, that in turn benefit from the spread of their viable seeds mixed with manure rich in nutrients, beneficial microorganisms and humus, back onto the soils and distributed over relatively large areas. There is no better way to rebuild fire-damaged soils in remote wilderness and fragile forest areas.
In addition to giving many native plants a reseeding and nutrient advantage, the year-round grazing by native species wild horses picks-up the slack from depleted deer herds in abating excessive ground fuels that are now fueling the disastrous catastrophic wild fires.
Cattle, sheep and goats do have potential applications in certain areas with careful management. Cattle and sheep can be used effectively in and around areas that are not close to wilderness areas and fragile forest ecosystems where native plants must not be stripped from the land along with all their seeds. Cattle and sheep can be used in areas that can by managed using mechanized means for annual soil conditioning and reseeding. Goats are a reasonable choice for urban areas in and around home sites where a smaller grazing animal makes sense.