Brumbies of Kosciuszko

2024 UPDATE - Please visit my GoFundMe to read about my latest Brumby film project and provide your support! gofund.me/7716a59e
The Brumbies of Kosciuszko have worked their way into Australian culture. They personify the wilderness of the Australian alpine landscape, where they’ve made their home, and have even worked their way into Australia’s recent folklore in Banjo Paterson’s “The Man from Snowy River”.
Two years ago, after a couple of chance encounters with the Brumbies in Australia's Kosciuszko National Park, I started taking my film equipment with me to capture some shots of the famous horses to show friends and family back home. Being from an equine background I was able to appreciate their struggle and their behaviours perhaps more than most who stopped to marvel at the Brumbies, this may have even helped my patience while sitting in the grass for hours on end until I gained their trust enough to get some shots of their natural behaviour.
Though there is strong debate in Australia about whether the non-native Brumbies should be allowed to roam free through the National Park, and as a professional ecologist and equine enthusiast I see both sides of the argument, there’s no denying the excitement and majesty of seeing them in this landscape. As they live in such secluded and regional areas of Australia, they possess almost a mythical existence, at least in my eyes, and carry a certain degree of celebrity. Though I’m not here to make a suggestion as to the ethics of their existence here, I hope you can appreciate their efforts and their success in the Australian high country.
Shot on Lumix S5 (with Sigma 150-600 S) and DJI Mavic Mini

[@judymedway3294]

Beautiful film, thank you for posting. The Australian brumbies are beautiful. They are an Aussie icon and have served this country well.

[@user-lb1eh8hn8s]

Why doesn’t the NSW Government establish a Wild Brumby reserve outside the National Park to help preserve these wonderful horses?

[@mawfish1]

Because it is extremely expensive to buy private land and turn it into a reserve, trap and move the horses and manage numbers in the reserve.

[@daledundee466]

Most of the people complaining about the horses have never been up there,numbers are greatly exaggerated , leave them alone

[@lionel9588]

Most people don't give a shit Australia is not like it use to be .the people in numbers can stop this culling.but there's to many do gooders that don't care .the only ferrels are the politicians I hate them .

[@jacyharding4006]

thank you Remy for such a wonderful film. I know what you mean about the debate, it is an internal conflict for me. I understand the implications for our parks but I can't help but love the beauty of them and especially the moment of watchfulness when they see you from a distance. . It was wonderful to see so many of the brums that we see on our trips out there. I love the fact that you have shared some of the behaviors, makes more sense now as to what we have seen when photographing them.

[@sarahjames5638]

I have a Kosciusko Brumby, they are magnificent horses, great doers and they bond with humans like no other. Remy that was just beautiful.

[@lucynorthhook908]

We may be purchasing a brumby from Kosciuszko too!

[@timcaddy9728]

Beautiful footage of the iconic Kozzi brumbies. I always enjoy seeing them on my many trips hiking in the high country.

[@amelynesautreau3049]

Hello, I would like to see the Brumbies, where do you hike? Where am I most likely to see them?

[@tonihoward2584]

Beautiful film. Very special Brumbies

[@fionamurphy2776]

The Grandeur 👌🏼 Well done Remy! I love it…. Beautiful in all aspects

[@Amanda-dl2sc]

This was so informative! Amazing footage

[@deniseladavis6169]

Scenery as beautiful as the brumbies ...would love to travel to this national park

[@judibanez]

Horses in captivity seem to be the norm, even among horse lovers. Allowing natural herds to flourish independently is important so we can continue to learn about horse behaviour and appreciate them without the severe limitations "owning" them brings. I was struck for example about the young stallions forming bonds of brotherhood..in contrast to the many lonely stallions kept in isolation by horse breeders.

[@gmariet1391]

Beautiful ! 🐎❤️

[@stormpaterson334]

Beautifully done, nice to see some of our favourites there.

[@gypsymae8730]

They are so precious and have so much history! They must be protected

[@terryolsson4145]

Horses are truly magnificent creatures next to the powerful and beautiful lions of Africa

[@olladypaddlin8891]

What a gorgeous film. I’ve always loved Brumbies and want them to be able to live there unharmed. Sadly this is far from what happens sometimes 😢

[@jchri132]

My sadness goes towards the unique nature thats nowhere else on the planet that gets trampled on by this beautiful brumbys.

[@Unicorn12280]

@@jchri132 It recovers. Thats how this land works.

[@jchri132]

@@Unicorn12280 Not all life is resiliant.

[@billmorley4772]

Such a beautiful video there doesn't seem to be many horses left looking at this footage as I was lead to believe . The scenery is stunning well done.

[@wesley55056]

Verdade concordo com sua afirmação

[@HelenaDBotros]

You are right, there are much less brumbies than the government wants you to believe. I have attached a small video of what’s happening right now. If you click on the image it will show the summary of what we s happening and why. kzbin.info/www/bejne/faCWhnpsetmsl5osi=Yf4DN84UrwQwA2lm

[@gerricktsosie4047]

beautiful horses ❤️❤️

[@itsverycontroversial8050]

You have a wonderful poetic way with words and imagery! Beautiful.

[@Remy_in_the_Wild]

Thank you so much!

[@lionel9588]

Instead of the wonderful poetic ways .wat about the horses.they get shot .

[@falcolf]

Gorgeous little mini documentary, absolutely loved it!

[@joshuacallow9192]

I have spent much time up there just this last year, and I have personally seen hundreds. Not always, as the park is vast but when you see one there is often many more. Encounters aren't always as pleasant as yours seem to have been. We can argue that they are wild but they will need generations more to become truly wild from their domestication. As many comments have said, this land is not made for them and their hard hooves, and they are having a significant ecological impact. One thing I can say about this video though Remy is that I thoroughly appreciate your efforts and your skills. There is no argument, these are beautiful creatures, and this environment is one where they have adapted reasonably well. They do not truly belong where they are but where else can they possibly go...

[@richardsilver98]

There is some really beautiful footage here and great information too. A grey mare who appears a few times is heavily in foal; to see her with foal at foot would have been amazing. Great video, thanks for it.

[@lionel9588]

😂no one will ever see that foal because there shooting them.most of the comments are about how wonderful the footage is.u better keep this video some how .because there won't be any horses to see .down the track because there all being shot.the footage might be great but with out the horses it's nothing.all thanks to the greens and the government.

[@brigitteweber9576]

AbSOULutely Exsquisite💜🙏💜

[@reneeneubauer1543]

Thank you for opening up so much more positive conversation about these beautiful creatures that have a place and value as being part of our culture tradition and history.

[@kyle-le7em]

I wish they deserved a life here unfortunately they are invasive nonetheless

[@LeslieNikulka]

Beautiful! Thank you for sharing.

[@Remy_in_the_Wild]

Thanks for watching!

[@stephenhawkins1616]

Diversity is our strength both animals and plants.

[@genialna19]

❤

[@phillipmccann9508]

Beautiful video of our Brumbies what a shame the National Parks and Government are shooting these incredible horses right now and horses meant to be rehoused have been Slaughtered in a illegal slaughter house in Wagga Wagga. And yet nothing has been done to stop this cruel act Australia day of shame

[@andrewthalerscrappy437]

Nice work mate.

[@theopaulgoi1933]

Hello, do you have any tips for working with horses there. I would like to know if ranches exist in this magnificent region? Do they work cattle with horses? thanks !

[@Remy_in_the_Wild]

Hi! There are a few Brumby foundations around Kosciuszko National Park that try to capture, retrain and rehome the Brumbies as a means of promoting their good nature and saving them from being culled. I imagine some of them do go on to do cattle work!

[@CoastalCoves]

Very nice video, These Brumbie they do divide opinions

[@darren3478]

They carried our troops in war, this is their home. I know who I will be protecting, definately not you ?....

[@harry.4.2.0]

I remember when we asked the horses and they said yeah we will fight for you. Sure would rather protect the native species which are actually unique to the world.

[@mawfish1]

I'm a descendant of people who fought in a war. Where is my medal? It is ridiculous to want to protect these because the had something to do with horses that went into battle.

[@markjek]

It's a pity that you focus on introduced species. Apart from the horses, the only aquatic species you mention are brown and rainbow trout which, along with the horses, threaten native fish like the Stocky Galaxias and Alpine Spiny Crays.

[@666dualsport]

they are as indigenous as any other animal now, leave them the hell alone, ban any culling

[@harry.4.2.0]

Well about as indigenous as deer, foxes and rats. They damage our rare alpine areas and threaten the native species which are actually indigenous and predated horses in this region for thousands of years

[@666dualsport]

@@harry.4.2.0 rubbish---- they been here so long they are too native--- bushfires do far more damage, and people in 4wds even more, im not against some type of humane culling--- but ive seen first hand what a horse shot from a helicopter is like, its jumping all around the place and most have their backs or guts blown out and die over days--- very very few are head shot

[@harry.4.2.0]

@@666dualsport but they still cause damage by trampling the ground and waterways. And no they are not native and I'd rather personally protect the native species that have been here for thousands of years, not just a few hundred since they escaped in colonial times.

[@MaribelGarcia-zz6ec]

Brumies belong to where they are, they are heritage, culture, icon and history to Australia. They are Aussie icon, helping to regain nature after natural disaster and protecting other animal species and humans, without them we have not identity and biologically is impossible to reproduce to thousands. Most important they help to rehabilitate children and adults with physical or intellectual difficulties. They need and have the right to live, we need them as part of our lifes.

[@mustaphaameziane2207]

سلام

[@michaelmaguire8223]

WHAT ABSOLUTE RUBBISH ! THE HORSES HAVE BEEN THERE FOR HUNDREDS OF YEARS ! SO IT OK FOR JOE FROM THE CITY TO GO FOUR WHEEL DRIVING THERE IS IT ! ! RUBBISH ! THESE BEAUTIFUL ANIMALS ARE NOT HARMING ANYTHING OR ANYONE ! I LOVE GODS EARTH BUT SOME GO TO FAR ! GO HUG ANOTHER TREE AND LEAVE THESE BEAUTIFUL ANIMALS IN PEACE ! MICHAEL IN MELBOURNE 👍❤️

[@kyle-le7em]

I love how passionate you are about animals I really do, unfortunately I feel like you are misguided by emotion, horses are beautiful creatures however they not native to these lands, no one is saying horses are evil or deserve to be mistreated however native animals deserve priority in conservation, that is the global norm and you can research on multiple platforms why horses as beautiful as they are belong on farms and not in open meadows, they are Pets not wild animals

[@michaelmaguire8223]

@@kyle-le7em KYLE You are WRONG ! tell me do you own a Four Wheel Drive and want the horses gone so you can go and rip up the COUNTRY SIDE ! Of course these Horses who have been running wild for over 150 years deserve better and protection and those who dis believe this don’t have souls ! These are Gods creatures ! REMEMBER THAT And are not jus PETS ! Please put your glasses on and get a grip of reality ! MICHAEL IN MELBOURNE 👍❤️

[@Boogleye]

​@kyle-le7em Your not native to it either bloke and either is ya parks management and killing government This is exactly what you did to us first nation people, We have no problem with the horses being there rather them there then you

[@michaelmaguire8223]

@@harry.4.2.0 You probably drive a four wheel drive and rip up the country side ! Bet you live in the city and don’t understand about these beautiful animals ! They have been around with our indigenous people since time began ! You get a grip and understand how beautiful these horses are ! Take a trip into our high country and leave your toy at home and look at there beauty ! You have no idea! Leave these glorious horses alone ! It’s people like you and there thoughts we don’t need! I sure you vote Greens ! Say NO MORE ! 🇦🇺🇦🇺🇦🇺🇦🇺🐎🐎🐎🐎🐎🐎🐎

[@wendystevens8428]

. @kyle-le7em So ignorant of modern science Kyle. Micheal is 100% correct - and YOU need to stop being an entitled human hypocrite! YOU also need to do some REAL research - David Bermans 2023 research concluded that horse impact is very minor % of the collective damage of humans, pigs, deer and horses, you might also discover that large herbivores such as horses and burros, along with Apex predators are now being reintroduced to restore the ecosystems they were once removed from. Catch up - the world is evolving!

[@AndrooH]

feral horses need to be managed as all other feral invasive species are. No romanticizing them. And I say that as someone who owns a brumby and has retrained/rehomed many over the years.

[@glenjones7006]

Both brown and rainbow trout aren`t native to Australia either.

[@lindagroom6568]

Very well photographed but sadly this misses the point about the extensive ecological damage the brumbies are causing in national parks.. Australians plants and animals did not evolve to cope with hard-hooved animals.

[@wendystevens8428]

MYTH: There is overwhelming scientific evidence that brumbies are causing severe damage. FACT: The scientists and academics on the Kosciuszko National Park Scientific Advisory Panel and the former Independent Technical Reference group state that there is a lack of independent and peer reviewed research on horse impacts and there are still significant knowledge gaps of horse impacts on the park. MYTH: Brumbies are causing the destruction of endangered species like Broad-toothed Rats, Northern Corroboree Frogs & Alpine She-oak Skinks. FACT: Broad Toothed Rat populations were in decline long before horses were considered over abundant & that area of Mt Kosciuszko has been horse free for 70 years! FACT: The Northern Corroboree Frog area has been heavily grazed by horses, cattle and sheep where they co-existed for well over 150 years and the frog remained plentiful during the grazing era. It was only when grazing leases actually ceased that the frog populations started to decline. Amphibian chytrid fungus causing the disease chytridiomycosis is killing them - most likely bought in to the park on human boots or Tyres. FACT: Alpine She-oak skinks only inhabit ‘horse free’ areas above 1500m elevation. The Alpine She-oak Skink is known from eight broad locations in alpine grasslands, alpine heathland and alpine grassy heathland above 1500 m in the Australian Alps.

[@johannarogers5301]

The drone made them gallop

[@craigdowner3096]

It’s so wrong to demonize these wonderful highly evolved presences, to over magnify their effects and cast them in a negative way whilst ignoring all that is positive about their being here and conducive to a harmonious and enhanced life community. How would people like to be so treated, singled out for denigrating and mercilessly slaughtered?!

[@andymarr7610]

Wonderful in every respect except they are destroying critical and sensitive environments. Now native species must be protected from horses and their damage, in a National Park. Insane.

[@Blue-Dog]

Seems white men are the major cause of destruction to Australia. It would be wonderful in every respect to have them removed.

[@falcolf]

Horses are actually far less destructive to the land than most other livestock species so I highly doubt that they are harming anything.

[@jairjar7596]

werttyuio

[@harry.4.2.0]

​@@falcolfas indicated by the zero scientific research showing that. They absolutely cause damage to the landscape and are one of the most abundant feral species in many areas of Kosciuszko.

[@wendystevens8428]

@harry.4.2.0 OMG what BULLSHIT you are spouting! Deer & Pigs out-number them at 1000 & 100:1 respectively! foxes, cats and rabbits are even more abundant. There are less than 3000 brumbies left in the 690,000 ha park now (so 10 horses per 5680 acres) and THAT number has been LEGISLATED as sustainable and non-damaging to the park. Yet they get blamed for everything that pigs, deer and humans do- Hell they were even being blamed for being 'cannibalistic' and dangerous lol. The LIES being spread about them are beyond ridiculous and YOU would have to be a massive numbnut to believe that crap. If you believe the bizarre, BIOLOGICALLY IMPOSSIBLE numbers NPWS are claiming via the Cairns methodology, which is: a) widely KNOWN to be incredibly inaccurate; b) has been applied to brumbies with NONE of the baseline requirements in place; AND, c) which would require every mare of any age to have had 7 foals a year for 5 years to achieve its estimate - you will believe anything. Actually, you EITHER have to believe that NPWS are LYING about their numbers so they can justify killing every last brumby, making this magnificent and unique heritage breed EXTINCT (despite the legislation allowing for & protecting 3000 in the park) & then say "oops we were 'misled' with the count", OR You believe their numbers are correct & there will be 11,000 to 20,000 brutally murdered horses rotting in the park and its waterways over the next 4 years. THAT would be worse than any damage these last remaining horses could do. Which one is it then Harry????

[@user-de5zg2dz7x]

Let's help these horses, their ancestors carried us through the Gallipoli war. They should be protected as our national heritage, not the emu or kangaroo❤

[@johannarogers5301]

Leave them alone

[@WhozWolfgang]

If you think hooved animals don't harm the lanscape then you don't know a thing about the country you stand on.

[@TheAutisticEducator]

As much as I love them, they are beautiful...but they do NOT belong. The damage they do to the natural environment is absolutely horrendous. Gloryfing them like this does not help and to the guy that said there don't appear to be many...you haven't been there have you?

[@wendystevens8428]

No the damage HUMANS do in the park is absolutely horrendous!!!! We can ALL see in this video there is extremely low density. There are only about 3000 in there now in 690,000 ha. That is LEGISLATED as a sustainable number that does not damage the park. Those landscapes and waterways are in perfect condition. We can SEE that! YOU have not been there, THAT is obvious. Pigs and Deer have damaged waterways as have humans - ESPECIALLY the humans that shoot these horses in their hundreds and leave them rotting all over the park, INCLUDING in waterways, feeding dogs and pigs causing their numbers then explode. THEN humans bring in 1080 baiting programs to 'manage' that problem they've created and poison huge amounts of wildlife in the process. Educate yourself instead of repeating ridiculous & disproven propaganda by extremists & liars who have financial interests in spreading that tripe you are re-spouting.

[@kriketina]

Their impact is not horrendous. Mama impact on this environment has been horrendous. A recent study in 2023 on their impact has been published. You may care to look it up.

[@robynyoulten5270]

The Brumbys would actually HELP to fertilise the soil and help with regrowth after the devastating wildfires of 2020. Other introduced species are creating havoc with the environment - however - government spruiking of 1,000's of Brumbies is SO INCORRECT and no matter...NO ANIMAL should be slaughtered/murdered by bullets from so called trained marksmen from helicopters or planes. NEEDLESS SENSELESS MURDER. Peace..let the brumbies live.

[@flyingoneranch]

Well it doesn’t look over grazed

[@williecosgrove]

10.01 nice pony

[@aussieguide]

I haven’t seen any during my last two trips across the top. 🥲

[@iot3136]

❤