This blog post is written by Luminescence
 
Breed spotlight: the Sorraia
Today’s blog is about a relatively uncommon breed: the Sorraia!
 
Origin
The Sorraia horse most likely originates from the Iberian Peninsula (Spain and Portugal), but much is unknown: these horses were only discovered in 1920! The Portuguese zoologist Ruy d’Andrade was the first to describe these beautiful horses. They lived in an uninhabited area, where local kings would occasionally come for hunting. Due to mechanisation and industrialization however, the horses became rarer and rarer. This prompted d’Andrade, who wanted to conserve the breed, to capture a couple of Sorraia’s. These days there are few Sorraia’s left: about 200 horses, which means the breed is nearly extinct.
 
Appearance
All Sorraia’s are dun: especially grullo (black dun) is common. These horses usually have a darker face, unlike for example Fjords, whose muzzle and underbelly are generally lighter (possibly due to Pangaré). Bi-coloured mane is quite common among this breed and the same goes for zebra stripes on the legs.
 
In terms of size, these horses generally stand between 13.5 and 14.5 hands (1.40 and 1.50 meters) at the shoulders, though they could also be a bit smaller. Like many other breeds in the Iberian region, they have a convex or sub convex profile: a Roman nose. The withers are quite prominent, and the hips can overhang a little bit.
 
Genetics
If the appearance of the Sorraia makes you think of certain American breeds, such as the Mustang or the Quarter Horse, that isn’t as crazy as it might seem! MtDNA-analysis seems to indicate a genetic link between Mustangs and the Sorraia. The most likely explanation for this is that the Spanish conquistadores took some horses with Sorraia-blood with them when they were conquering the American continent.
 
Research is being conducted on potential genetic similarities between the Sorraia and other wild horses, like the tarpan or Przewalski’s horse. However, I wasn’t able to find any conclusive evidence that supports one side or the other.
 
Facts
1. In the Portuguese history, the term zebro was used to describe an animal, which was probably the Sorraia. However, this topic is still hotly debated. If you’re interested in reading more, you could check out this webpage!
2. Historical descriptions seem to indicate that the Sorraia used to have more stripes. Ruy d’Andrade, who discovered the Sorraia, drew them like this:
.

A possible explanation is that the stripes disappeared due to incest.
3. Though Sorraia’s aren’t bred for great performances in the competitions, the stallions are actually used in equestrian sports: the horses tend to be fairly suitable for cross country.
 
Have you heard of the Sorraia before? What do you think about the breed?
 

Image source: Andreas Konopka, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
 
Thumbnail source: Selona, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons