Spain’s economic recovery has been slow — if at all. And as the economic malaise persists, families are making choices about what they spend. So, when the $400 bill comes to keep a horse another month, many families are saying no more and abandoning them. Within months, the horses are dead, if not rescued.
Normally a nuisance to native species in eastern US waters, the exotic Zebra mussel is now being employed by home aquarium owners as living filters. But what at first seemed like a good, low cost alternative to mechanized filters, has now proven to have its drawbacks. Kevin Niedermeier reports from Cleveland.
Melinda Penkava reports from the outer banks of North Carolina on the fate of the islands’ wild horses. Horses roam freely on the barrier islands along the US southeastern coast, but for how long? Development is shrinking their range and the horses’ destructive grazing habits may pose a threat to the delicate barrier islands themselves.
Paul Bartlett was slogging through a PhD in animal behavior when he decided he would rather be painting. Bartlett finished his studies, left behind the zebra finches in his research lab, and now depicts razorbills, puffins, and other shore life in his native Scotland. Produced by Ari Daniel Shapiro.