White markings are white areas on the horses, not caused by any white patterns.
¶ Phenotype
White markings are white patches of hair on the face, legs and/or body of the horse, not caused by any of the currently identified white patterns. The skin of these white areas is pink. This is the result of a lack of melanocytes (pigment cells). If a horse has white markings on the legs, the hoofs will usually also be light in colour. White markings are often given different names, depending on their location and size.
¶ Face
- Blaze: A wide band of white running down the horse's face, from between the eyes to the nose.
- Stripe: A thin band of white running down the horse's face, from between the eyes to the nose.
- Bald face: A white marking that covers almost the entire face and that may go over the eyes.
- Star: A white marking between or above the eyes.
- Snip: A white marking on the muzzle, between the nostrils.
- White lip: A face marking may also go over the chin or lower lip of the horse. This may indicate that a hidden sabino pattern could be present.
- Blue eyes: When a white marking or pattern goes over the face and/or eyes, this can cause one or two blue eyes. This is typical for white patterns such as splashed white or frame overo.
¶ Legs
- Stocking: A high leg marking that extends up to the knee or hock of the horse.
- Sock: A leg marking that ends above the fetlock of the horse.
- Pastern or coronet markings: Leg markings that end below the fetlock of the horse, just above the hooves.
- Ermine marks: These are coloured spots that can appear, usually just above the hoof, in a white leg marking. This may cause the hoof to become striped or even entirely darker, instead of having a light colour.
¶ Body
- Belly spots: White patches under or on the belly may be an indication that hidden sabino is present.
- White ticking: White ticking or “roaning” refers to white hairs that get mixed into the coat. This is often seen in horses with (hidden) sabino or white spotting.
- Birdcatcher spots: These are small, white spots that may appear all over a horse's body. They are named after a Thoroughbred stallion called Birdcatcher. These spots can appear later in life, and they can disappear and reappear again. Their cause has not yet been discovered.
Other terms commonly used regarding white markings are:
- Irregular edges: When a part of a leg marking extends higher up the leg than the rest, this is referred to as having irregular edges. This may also be a sign of hidden sabino.
- Occluding spot: An occluding spot is a coloured area inside of a white marking or pattern, making the marking look incomplete. This can cause very interesting phenotypes, such as the “badger face”: A marking that looks like a “reverse blaze” where the horse has a coloured head, with white areas at the sides of it.
- Loud: When a horse has a lot of white markings (or a very bold expression of a white pattern), this is often referred to as having “loud” markings.
Foals are normally born with their white markings and retain them throughout their life. Exceptions to this are, for example, markings that are the result of environmental causes such as scarring (e.g. saddle marks) or birdcatcher spots, and white ticking which may increase as the horse gets older.
It can sometimes be hard to distinguish minimal expressions of white patterns from regular white markings.
| White Markings - Akhal-Teke Horse | |
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Irregular edges of socks, and a white lip are signs of hidden sabino |
Irregular edges, white lip and belly spot are signs of hidden sabino |
¶ Genotype
The genetic causes of white markings have not yet been identified in real life. It is suspected that it is polygenic; the interaction of several genes may boost or reduce the amount of white marking a horse has. Factors during the development of the foal in the uterus may also play a role as (identical) twins and cloned horses, which have the same genetics, show differences in their white markings.
In-game, white markings are caused by the alleles of the hidden WM gene. There are several different possible WM-alleles, but a horse can of course always have only two of them. Which combination of WM-alleles a horse has, will determine the amount or size of their white markings; for example, whether they only have one small sock or high stockings on all four legs. Certain combinations of WM-alleles may also affect the expression of other white patterns.
¶
Breeds
White markings are present in most breeds. However, their size and rarity can differ strongly between them. In some breeds, such as Friesian Horses, white markings can be very rare and small; which is often caused by selective breeding. In other breeds on the other hand, for example in Shire Horses, large white markings are abundant. The following table lists all breeds that can currently have white markings in Horse Reality.
| Breeds |
| Akhal-Teke Horse |
| Arabian Horse |
| Brabant Horse |
| Brumby Horse |
| Camargue Horse |
| Cleveland Bay |
| Exmoor Horse |
| Finnhorse |
| Fjord Horse |
| Friesian Horse |
| Haflinger Horse |
| Icelandic Horse |
| Irish Cob Horse |
| Kladruber Horse |
| Knabstrupper |
| Lipizzaner |
| Lusitano |
| Mongolian Horse |
| Mustang Horse |
| Namib Desert Horse |
| Noriker Horse |
| Norman Cob |
| Oldenburg Horse |
| Pantaneiro Horse |
| Pura Raza Española |
| Quarter Horse |
| Shetland Pony |
| Shire Horse |
| Suffolk Punch |
| Thoroughbred |
| Trakehner Horse |
| Welsh Pony |
¶
References
- Bellone R., Sponenberg D. P., Equine Color Genetics, 4th Edition, 2017, Wiley-Blackwell
- Stachurska A., White markings in horses, Medycyna Weterynaryjna, 2012