New regulations require visitors to Assateague Island National Seashore to keep their distance and stash their food from the island's wild ponies. | Photo Credit: Courtesy National Park Services

Visitors to Assateague Island National Seashore (AINS) must keep their distance and stash their food from the wild ponies that reside there under new rules intended to keep both the animals and humans safe.

The AINS is home to feral ponies believed to be descended from domestic horses brought to barrier islands in the late 17th century by mainland owners eager to skirt fencing laws and livestock taxes. Currently, the ponies residing on Assateague are split into two main herds: one on the Virginia side and one on the Maryland side of the island, and are separated by a fence at the state line. The National Park Service manages the Maryland herd.

The animals have become popular attractions for visitors to the AINS. Highly habituated to humans, the ponies have become deft at breaking into visitors’ food supplies and can become aggressive with humans they perceive as threatening their territories, said AINS spokesman Carl Zimmerman