at 38 Minutes:00 seconds
Presenter: Gillian Burke
To help manage this landscape naturally the RSPB have recently introduced Konik ponies to one of the sites in the Dearne Valley.
Konik means horse in Polish, but don't be fooled by these beautiful delicate wintery colour palettes; these are extremely tough, extremely hardy animals - they're absolutely stunning, it's got to be said. Now just to give you an idea of the size of these, they stand at 13 hands, which we reckon is a little over 4 feet tall, which is probably as high as this - so this is up to the shoulder - that's the kind of size of pony they are, pretty modest, but like I said, they are tough as old boots. So let's take a look at the features that make these ponies so very hardy. Now they've got these deep chests and strong legs that help them get through marshy boggy tough terrain, but they also thrive on poor grass, and poor nutirition, so they don't need supplementary feeding, they can actually do really well on the stuff. They're cold-adapted animals as well, which means they can cope with temperatures down to minus 40 degrees. Some of the features that help them do this is they've got smaller ears, so it means they have less heat loss, but they also have these fluffy ear tufts that stop the snow from going in, and they've also got thick, waterproof coats unlike the domestic horses**.
So all this means they can stay out over the winter with very little intervention which is just how they like it.
So all this is great - they're perfectly adapted to surviving a Yorkshire winter - but how does this benefit the reserve? Well, it's their grazing and their feeding behaviour that helps to create a habitat, areas of habitat, that are known as Blue Zones. It all sounds very intriguing but Blue Zones are just habitat edges. This is kind of a no man's land between habitats. Now these zones become very dynamic as they're constantly being turned over by the Koniks' grazing activity, it keeps the area very open, keeps it marshy, attracts invertebrates, which of course attracts the birds, like this beautiful snipe, over here. So this is an incredible benefit, this natural management brought by these ponies allows for this variety of habitat for the benefit of all sorts of wildlife. And like I said, it's because of these super-ponies* with their ability to overwinter, their hardy traits, means that they provide this absolutely vital wildlife haven in some of the most industrial, densely populated parts of the country.
** "domestic horses" is the crux here - British native breeds also have all these features
* the programme theme for the night had been "super powers" so this is a tie-in to that, but is also misleading re not referencing other breeds of pony.
I have to complain about how poorly researched your Winterwatch programme broadcast was on 21/01/21. Apparently Koniks (a reconstructed breed from Poland) are the only equines that can withstand the British climate and weather all year round. You also asserted that Koniks are the only breed with a waterproof coat! If this is the case how do you explain the existence of native British breeds surviving our climate for hundreds of years?
Among our hardy native breeds of pony, the Fell pony has the capability and intelligence to do well on conservation sites. As a rare breed, it also has high aesthetic appeal and is well worth consideration for use on sites with public access.
The Fell thrives on rough grazing. Requiring only routine husbandry, it is ideally suited to a variety of lowland and upland habitats, and upland herds, being thrifty feeders, can maintain themselves by finding sufficient low quality forage even in exposed conditions. They have long manes which protect their small ears and keep them warm, and with a coat adapted to a harsh mountain climate of snow, heavy rain and cold winds they can withstand temperatures as low as -20 degrees C. Even with frost or snow lying on their backs, they are warm and dry at skin level.
Fell ponies have strong feet, good-sized, open and round. Their hooves of characteristic blue horn are slow-growing and so well able to cope with wet conditions, and frequently require no trimming.
In snow they will dig for forage and they are able to break thin ice on frozen drinking water. They are very resourceful animals.
As Chairman of the Fell Pony Society I would like to invite you to visit some Fell Pony herds in Cumbria and film them in their natural habitat. You would soon see how one of hardiest native breeds could surpass Koniks in every way, and you would also be supporting a rare British pony.
Dear Mr Boustead
Thank you for contacting Winterwatch and for your comments about the item we featured on the Konik ponies in the second episode of the series.
We know that there are some amazing breeds of hardy, wild ponies within the UK and we would always be happy to feature them should the opportunity arise. If we could explain the context of the Konik item then it may help to explain the reason for featuring this species alone.
As our presenter Gillian Burke said, at the start of the item, our intention had always been to return live to the Dearne Valley after a very successful fortnight there in October for our Autumnwatch run. For that reason, we had sent a wildlife camera operator to the area in the intervening time to film sequences featuring local flora and fauna. One of the things he found and captured on camera were the Konik ponies.
Sadly, when the extra COVID restrictions were announced in December we felt it would not be appropriate to return to the area because it would mean our presenter travelling a long distance and so we moved our live location to her home area. However, we still wanted to feature the footage that we had already filmed and so chose to broadcast a feature on the Koniks as part of an item that talked exclusively about the Dearne Valley area.
Throughout the item Gillian never suggested that the Koniks are the only hardy pony species living in the UK. She describes their physical adaptations that help them in the harsh weather but only ever compares these features to domestic horses not any of our native species of wild pony.
The RSPB have introduced the Koniks to the Dearne Valley and we featured them because we had filmed them as part of an item on winter there. We would always be happy to feature items on any of our native breeds if we were ever filming in a location to which they were local.
We do hope that helps to explain and thank you for getting in touch. We do hope you can continue to enjoy the series.
Best Wishes
The Winterwatch team
BBC Complaints Team
www.bbc.co.uk/complaints