Randy Olson, Melissa Farlow Photography

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  • Outhouses with a quiet view of open fields are illuminated by a streetlight in White River, South Dakota.<br />
One for men; one for women; one has no label.
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  • Curious foals are drawn to a water hole making a reflective, pastoral scene as the herd grazes in early spring in South Dakota.
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  • A mare and foal crest a hill under darkening gray skies of a looming storm in South Dakota.  The silhouetted pair are part of the Gila herd of wild horses with Spanish origin that came to North America with the Conquistadors in the 1600s.
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  • Strong winds blow rain from a storm cloud that violently erupts with loud claps of thunder that sends a band of horses running for safety. The young foal runs behind, following her mother and another mare.<br />
The wild horse herd nervously watched as a storm approached in central South Dakota. When lightning and thunder began, they galloped to a far away fence where they could go no further. The "fight or flight" instinct of behavior is powerful and horses often panic and flee when they sense danger.
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  • Wild horses graze at dusk as the moon rises over a ranch in land in South Dakota where mustangs and burros are protected.
    MELISSA FARLOW_MM7517_1222785.jpg
  • A mud volleyball game at a Powwow in South Dakota which is one the north end of the Ogallala Aquifer.
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  • Native Americans set up teepees for the annual powwow that is held during Frontier Days in White River, South Dakota.
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  • If you are quiet, they may approach you. A trusting, wild mustang gently nuzzles a wild horse activist.
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  • A yearling finds a low lying limb on a tree to scratch his back.
    MELISSA FARLOW_MM7517_1222907.jpg
  • A wild mustang stallion chases studs away from his mares. Other horses in the herd graze, rarely stopping to watch.
    MELISSA FARLOW_MM7517_1222882.jpg
  • The horse herd grazes in the last hours of light, and a mustang mare locates and nuzzles her foal.
    MELISSA FARLOW_MM7517_1222879.jpg
  • Two yearling mock battle to earn confidence to battle a stallion. As they mature, stallions fight for dominance in a herd.
    MELISSA FARLOW_MM7517_1222875.jpg
  • Ears pointed forward, a wild Palomino canters blurring at a fast pace through grasslands and prairie. Palominos are recognized by the color of horse distinguished by their cream, yellow, or gold coat and white or silver mane and tail. The Palomino horse is said to have originated in Spain around 1519, at the beginning of the Spanish New World and Cortez's reign. Although the exact development of these horses is unknown, their origin is rooted in Spain. Ears tipped forward indicate excitement or interest.
    MELISSA FARLOW_MM7517_1222874.jpg
  • Two gray stallions put their heads together to smell a territorial marking. Although it may look friendly, the mustangs are exhibiting behavior typical in a wild horse herd when studs are vying for dominance. At this point, they may fight or walk away to battle another time.
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  • An illusive band of wild horses crests a ridge under a full moon and a night sky. Horse sleep only a few hours a night ever on guard for their safety from predators.
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  • Detail of the main on a colorful wild horse rescued from the Sheldon Wildlife Refuge.
    MELISSA FARLOW_MM7517_1222830.jpg
  • Bachelor mustangs spar and mock battle to practice their fighting moves and build up the courage to challenge a stallion to steal mares for their own bands. A thick blanket of fog made it tough for the dominant stallion to keep a watchful eye to protect his band.
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  • Under a threatening storm, a herd of horses crosses a stream following the lead mare. In a wild horse herd, she leads them to food and water while the stallions follow behind to guard. A herd is similar to a neighborhood and made up of bands that are like families. These horses have dark dorsal stripes and primitive markings. They are genetic descendants of the Gila herd that came with Spanish Conquistadors to North America in the 1600s.
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  • A wild horse enthusiast is greeted by a band of mustangs that recognize her truck.
    MELISSA FARLOW_MM7517_1222821.jpg
  • A powerful, wild stallion with ears pinned back and a mouthful of grass breaks from grazing to chase a challenging stud in the horse herd.
    MELISSA FARLOW_MM7517_1222820.jpg
  • A young stud lifts his lip catching a whiff of a mare in heat. The Flehmen response is a biological reaction to smell where an animal curls back the upper lip and senses pheromones.
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  • A wild horse is seriously wounded from running into a barbed wire fence. The western landscape is full of old fences that once divided ranches and they are hazards for unsuspecting wildlife.
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  • Lightning bolt strikes and a rainbow appears as sun sets during summer storm season. The gate is closed tightly at the end of a long work day.
    MELISSA FARLOW_MM7517_1222813.jpg
  • A herd of mustangs move across the grasslands as a summer storm builds over the high plains. It is believed that over two million wild horses roamed the largely unfenced American West in the 1900s.
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  • Stallions battle for mares during the foaling season which is generally in the spring, There are constant conflicts that interrupt the wild horse's grazing habits.
    MELISSA FARLOW_MM7517_1222810.jpg
  • A wary foal stands with his mother near other mares in the herd as they graze together.<br />
Foals are often born with a pale shade of their adult color. In the wild, the dull colored coat camouflages babies from predators. However, they typically shed their fuzzy foal coat at three or four months of age and evolve into their adult coloration.
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  • A rumble of thunder, crack of lightning, and winds blow dark clouds across the prairie alerting a mustang herd that a summer storm approaches. When the sky opened with torrents of rain, the nervous young wild horses bolted to outrun the storm.
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  • Scars and open wounds prove the fights are fierce. When wild stallions battle for mares and status in the hierarchy of a herd, the injuries can be brutal.
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  • Stallions kick up their heels as they spar in a battle for mares during the foaling season.
    MELISSA FARLOW_MM7517_1222791.jpg
  • Profile of a curious, young, fuzzy mustang foal.<br />
Foals are often born with a pale shade of their adult color. In the wild, the dull colored coat camouflages babies from predators. They typically shed their fuzzy foal coat at three or four months of age, however, and evolve into their adult coloration.
    MELISSA FARLOW_MM7517_1222790.jpg
  • A ghostly gray horse stealthily emerges from the darkness of a dark summer night under a full moon.
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  • Young studs playfully practice their moves to fight for dominance in the White Sands Herd. A well placed bite may give one an advantage in a battle for mares during breeding season. The instinctual training is to insure preservation of the strongest in the herd. Brutal fights can leave mustangs scarred and injured so the yearlings practice as they mature.
    MELISSA FARLOW_MM7517_1222776.jpg
  • A protected wild mustang foal naps in a meadow near his mother. Newborn horses sleep up to twelve hours during the day, but graduate to adults that sleep only three hours -- and often standing.
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  • Two stallions battle for dominance in a war dance of wild horses showing typical fighting behavior in a herd. Many mustang studs have missing ears, and their bodies are battle-scarred from bite marks and strikes from front hooves. <br />
The mustangs' primitive markings are consistent with ancient coloration of horses brought to North America by the Spanish Conquistadors in the 1600s.
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  • Traditional dress of feathers, paint and symbols of eagles are worn by a Native American for a Powwow in White River.
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  • Cowboy hats are the typical attire for all who watch and compete in the White River Rodeo.
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  • A rancher is well digging on the Rosebud Reservation where he leases land. Power lines are a relic from when the power companies were complicit with pumping out the aquifer running lines for miles for free. But now with too many wells for the power companies to afford this, more diesel and solar pumps are installed.
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  • After ritualistic pawing and sniffing, an aggressive gray stallion goes for the throat of another wild horse in a confrontation to establish dominance. Fur flies as the stallion rears back, caught off guard at the attack. Although many conflicts are short and not so brutal, serious injuries can occur as stallions fight. Many mustang studs have missing ears, and their bodies are battle-scarred from bite marks and strikes from front hooves. <br />
White Sands herd from the missile range in Utah have a rare gaited gene.
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  • A blue-eyed mustang mare is a descendant of horses bred in the Nevada's Sheldon Range. The horses were used as mounts for cavalry, and in later years, shipped to Europe to serve as war horses during WWI and WWII.
    MELISSA FARLOW_MM7517_1222881.jpg
  • A curious yearling approaches warily and wind-blown, shedding his shaggy winter coat. Although cautious, the horses’ ears are forward showing interest and openness. Horses are very social. Young ones play fight and gallop showing little fear as they test their skills while they navigate the hierarchy among members of a wild horse herd. These horses are descendants of a herd bred for the US Cavalry in the 1800s. Rounded up during WWI and WWII, they were shipped to Europe serving as "War Horses" pulling artillery and serving as mounts.
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  • Two young foals explore a scratching post tree after watching other horses in the herd pass under it  creating a well-worn path.
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  • Young studs playfully mock battle to earn confidence to battle a stallion. They practice their moves by chasing, biting, kicking and fighting.
    MELISSA FARLOW_MM7517_1222876.jpg
  • A Palomino mustang mare intently gallops with a blur and ears pointed forward.
    MELISSA FARLOW_MM7517_1222873.jpg
  • An older red stallion scarred from bites and fights intently watches a challenging stud. Battles for dominance in a wild horse herd can be brutal.
    MELISSA FARLOW_MM7517_1222871.jpg
  • A blue-eyed Palomino mare approaches for a closer look. The U.S. government released Thoroughbred horses at Nevada’s Sheldon range to mix with the Standardbred bloodlines making a bigger, faster “war horse.” During World War I and II, horses were rounded up from Sheldon, loaded onto railroad cars and taken to the East Coast where they were shipped across the Atlantic Ocean. Horses that survived the journey had a bit placed in their mouths and began to pull artillery or serve as a cavalry mount. A shipment of 500 horses left every day and a half to supply American and Allied troops.  Nearly eight million horses died in World War I alone. <br />
Remnants of the “war horse” herds roamed free until they were totally removed from the Sheldon National Wildlife Range.
    MELISSA FARLOW_MM7517_1222829.jpg
  • A bachelor band of wild horses stick together to face into the wind picking up scents. Older studs join younger ones forming a family when none have mares or are accepted into another group.
    MELISSA FARLOW_MM7517_1222828.jpg
  • A wild horse's mane flies forward as the stallion stands after rolling to take a dirt bath on a foggy morning. The more dominant horses will have a favourite rolling spot and will be the last to roll in it. This means that their scent is the strongest and therefore their rank is higher within the herd.
    MELISSA FARLOW_MM7517_1222826.jpg
  • A pair of protected wild horse foals wander through tall grasses. The black and white orphan babies were rescued and later adopted after their herds were captured by the Bureau of Land Management.
    MELISSA FARLOW_MM7517_1222823.jpg
  • An animal activist watches a young mustang foal roll in the dirt. They were out for a walk when the young foal stopped and dropped. <br />
Horses roll for pleasure and to clean their coats with sand and soil.
    MELISSA FARLOW_MM7517_1222822.jpg
  • Born in the cover of a dark night, a foal slowly takes his first steps to walk beside his mother at dawn. Young foals are stand and walk within minutes of birth. Instincts drive the mares to move their newborns to safety. The mare has a freeze brand on her neck indicating she was once a wild horse captured by the Bureau of Land Management.
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  • A Palomino mustang mare with a blue eye has distinctive, unusual coloration.
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  • Tension mounts as two battle-scarred wild stallions face off. In a wild horse herd, the dominant stallion is challenged by other studs in a brutal quest for hierarchy. Eye to eye, the horses stare and smell each other which is the beginning of the fight ritual. Many mustang studs have missing ears, and their bodies are battle-scarred from bite marks and strikes from front hooves.
    MELISSA FARLOW_MM7517_1222817.jpg
  • Two wild stallions eye each other and begin a ritual to establish dominance. They paw the ground establishing their turf and next they will either walk away or fight. Horses are prey animals with a strong "fight-or-flight" response where they flee for safety but they defend themselves or stand their ground when their hierarchy is challenged.
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  • Portrait of a young, gentle-natured wild yearling scratching his neck on a tree limb. Ears pointed forward indicate the curious young horse shows little fear when approached in a slow, calm manner.
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  • A wild mustang foal nuzzles a wild horse activist.
    MELISSA FARLOW_MM7517_1222789.jpg
  • Foals are often born with a pale shade of their adult color. In the wild, the dull colored coat camouflages baby horses from predators. They typically shed their fuzzy foal coat, however, and at three or four months of age evolve into their adult coloration.
    MELISSA FARLOW_MM7517_1222787.jpg
  • A young mustang foal romps to play in a meadow running circles around his mother while she grazes with other mares in the horse herd.
    MELISSA FARLOW_MM7517_1222786.jpg
  • A frisky mustang foal romps in a meadow.<br />
Foals are often born with a pale shade of their adult color. In the wild, the dull colored coat camouflages babies from predators. However, they typically shed their fuzzy foal coat at three or four months of age and evolve into their adult coloration.
    MELISSA FARLOW_MM7517_1222782.jpg
  • A mare watches over a newborn foal that is her grandson, scolding him for trying to nurse with her. Although he is minutes old and just standing for the first time, she is teaching him his first life lessons while his mother rests after just giving birth.
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  • Cowboys watch the White River Rodeo from a wooden grandstand above the outdoor arena.
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  • Well drillers let the water run to clear a well they just drilled for a rancher that leases land from the Rosebud Sioux Reservation. The power lines in the background are a relic from when the power companies were implicit with pumping out the aquifer - they would run lines for miles to your pump for free. But now there are just too many wells for the power companies to afford this - so there are more diesel and solar pumps being put in now.
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  • Dot, a former wild horse now works the Wyoming range with a sheepherder. He is tame enough for trick riding and is a patient, obedient, old soul.
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  • Former wild horses are rewarded with oats after a long day working a Wyoming ranch with sheepherders. Camp is set up near the sheep and herders live on the range.
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  • A former wild horse stands steadfast while patiently waiting for a shepherd to check on a lamb as they work together on the Wyoming range.
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  • Two Pyrenees guard dogs herd sheep on the Wyoming range at sunrise.
    MELISSA FARLOW_MM7517_1222888.jpg
  • A once wild horse now works the Wyoming range with a sheepherder. The sure footed, adopted equine is won the trust of ranchers and cowboys when he saved the life of a rider lost in a blizzard by finding his way home.
    MELISSA FARLOW_MM7517_1222887.jpg
  • An adopted former wild horse now works the Wyoming range with a sheepherder and dogs.<br />
Dot, white mustang, was trained by prison inmates and then bought by rancher owners at a public auction. The docile horse earned his keep one week later when he saved the life of a shepherd who was lost in a blinding snow storm. The rider dropped the reins trusting the horse to find his way back home in spite of the blizzard.
    MELISSA FARLOW_MM7517_1222886.jpg
  • A former wild horse now works a Wyoming range with a sheepherder. Dot was trained by prison inmates and adopted for the ranch. The first week he arrived, a herder was lost in a blizzard and in danger of freezing. The rider dropped the reins and held onto the horses neck as the sure-footed mustang found his way home.
    MELISSA FARLOW_MM7517_1222884.jpg
  • A former wild horse, adopted and trained, now works the Wyoming range with a sheepherder and his dog. Owners find that mustangs are sure-footed on a trail and spook less than domesticated horses.
    MELISSA FARLOW_MM7517_1222788.jpg
  • Dot, a former wild horse, patiently waits under a guard dog's watchful eye as a sheepherder checks on the animals in his care.<br />
After the mustang was trained by prison inmates, the horse was sold at auction. He earned respect the first week on the ranch in the Wyoming range when he found his way back to the corral in a blizzard saving the life of his mount.
    MELISSA FARLOW_MM7517_1201771.jpg
  • The Window on the World amusement park in Shenzhen allows Chinese to travel the world in an afternoon. Behind “Mount Rushmore” in this photo, actors dress as Africans in huts and Egyptians at the Great Pyramids of Giza. Historically, during Mao, Chinese have not been able to travel, but for now they can look at the “Eiffel Tower” and “Mount Rushmore” at Window on the World. <br />
<br />
Because of China’s one-child policy, instituted in 1978, this is the first generation in the world’s history in which a majority are single children, a group whose solipsistic tendencies have been further encouraged by a growing obsession with consumerism, the Internet, and video games. At the same time, today’s young Chinese are better educated and more worldly than their predecessors. Whereas the so-called Lost Generation that grew up in the Cultural Revolution often struggled to finish high school, today around a quarter of Chinese in their 20s have attended college. The country’s opening to the West has allowed many more of its citizens to satisfy their curiosity about the world: some 37 million will travel overseas in 2007. In the next decade, there will be more Chinese tourists traveling the globe than the combined total of those originating in the U.S. and Europe.
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  • Beef Empire Days ranch riding competition in Garden City, Ks., which is at the heart of the American breadbasket where farmers grow corn, wheat and sorghum and raise cattle. Over the last sixty years, two technologies have transformed production from rain fed-oriented agriculture to high-intensity irrigated agriculture, a change that transformed the local economy. Instead of relying on rain, Garden City farmers now use low-cost groundwater pumps and a technique called "center-pivot irrigation" to essentially mine for water locked deep underground. Garden City's current bounty is possible because beneath these farmer's fields is a vast reservoir of water, called the Ogallala Aquifer. This vast stretch of groundwater touches eight states, from South Dakota and Wyoming to New Mexico and Texas and so, because the semi-arid climate of the High Plains doesn't receive enough rainfall to support intensive agriculture, farmers pump this trapped water above ground to irrigate their fields.
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