Challenge Painting #188 Blazer Band Stallion of the Sand Wash Basin HMA Colorado

Blazer, Band Stallion of Sand Wash Basin HMA

"Blazer"
Band Stallion Sand Wash Basin HMA
5 by 5 inches Watercolor
by LindaLMartinArtist
$35.00

Blazer is a Band Stallion that lives with his harem of mares in the Sand Wash Basin HMA in Colorado. Blazer currently has one Mare as of this writing. Her name is Mystic. She and all the horses on the Sand Wash Basin HMA have been given names by the photo-documenters for identification purposes. On the The Sand Wash Basin the number of stallions to mares as of the last BLM Round up of 2008,  is that the stallions far out number the mares. This makes the competition very tough for a stallion to build up a band of any size.

Often when visiting the Sand Wash Basin, the photographers come back with updates on all the changes. It is not unusual for a mare to be with more than one stallion during the season. Not at the same time of course but as the stallions vie for mares upand coming younger stallions steal to build their harems steal from who ever is easiest. The one stallion that seems more consistent than all the others is Corona. He is an older more powerful stallion and at least up through this year he has managed not only to keep all his mares but  he keeps his band away from those who would ursurp his power.

 When you have an opportunity to visit Sand Wash Basin and see a band  it is important to know that what you are seeing might be a band of one mare and stallion and their offspring. Sometimes if a mare has been stolen she will leave her weanling and yearling behind. So a band of 6 or 7 may have a stallion, a mare, and 2 yearlings, 2 weanlings and perhaps a two year old that hasn't left the band yet.

Blazer's reference photo is by John Wagner. John has been a frequent visitor to the Sand Wash Basin HMA in the last few years. So far he has published two books of photography. The first was on the life of a family of eagles,First Flight the Journey of a Man and an Eagle and the Second on the Herd of Sand Wash Basin Wild Horses near Craig, Colorado,The Magnificent Wild Mustangs of Sand Wash Basin
. You can find out more about Johns trips and his books through Facebook.