They sculpt bush and meadow, spread seed and fertilize the earth.
The horses roam here in their thousands as they have for centuries without the need for fences and reins.
They are free in their wildness like the mustangs of the great plains.
In the summer, they pick in a desultory way at the dried and seemingly lifeless herbs and grasses. This lean fare must carry them through the next few months and no outward energy is wasted under the pitiless Andalucián sun.
This is particularly the case now for the mares are heavy with foal and in just a few short weeks they will start to give birth as the summer fades.
As ever, nature times this to perfection; within a week of their birth the first autumn rains will start to fall and the landscape will become verdant once more.
This lush growth will bring strength and milk to the mothers and balm to the souls of their newborn babes.
The wheel of life continues to turn upon the mountain.
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Photo: Wild horses at Saladaviciosa. Courtesy of the author.