takhi

Two decades ago, the species was officially extinct outside of captivity—the last wild takhi was seen wandering the Mongolian steppes back in 1969—though a few lived in zoos in Europe.

Wild Horses Drag You Away Kit Gillet 2011

A big concern is how to keep the takhi from interbreeding with domesticated horses, which the park does by wherever possible keeping domesticated horses away from the outskirts of the park.

Wild Horses Drag You Away Kit Gillet 2011

"There are two other parks in Mongolia that have started to reintroduce the takhi ," says our guide when we are back in the warmth of his yurt, "but Hustai is their home."

Wild Horses Drag You Away Kit Gillet 2011

But 69-year-old Tserennadmid—like most Mongolians, he goes by just one name—has spotted a group of the last truly wild horses on earth, the Przewalski's Horses, known to locals as takhi , or 'spirit.'

Wild Horses Drag You Away Kit Gillet 2011

Camouflaged by the rocks and boulders around them, the takhi appear 50 meters in front of us, peacefully grazing and altogether ignoring our presence

Wild Horses Drag You Away Kit Gillet 2011

Jeffrey Lau A family of takhi in their natural habitat: the vast plains of Hustai National Park in central Mongolia.

Mongolia's wild Takhi 2011

Hustai park was set up by the Mongolian government almost 20 years ago as a safe home to the takhi .

Wild Horses Drag You Away Kit Gillet 2011

The takhi are naturally shy animals and are not easy to find.

Wild Horses Drag You Away Kit Gillet 2011

In all, around 250 takhi live in Hustai now there are about 400 wild takhi in total across China and Mongolia.

Wild Horses Drag You Away Kit Gillet 2011

A conservation group based in the Netherlands started on plans in the early 1990s to introduce some of the animals from zoos in Prague and Munich back into their native environment, and the takhi have made their way back from the brink of extinction.

Wild Horses Drag You Away Kit Gillet 2011