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Tara A. Spears
From the rugged terrains of rural communities to bustling markets in city squares, burros in Mexico continue to play an indispensable role in various aspects of daily life, making them a cherished and valuable asset in this vibrant and complex country. At first glance, the burro’s distinctive, clownish face, floppy ears and small stature make it easy to overlook the animals’ strengths.
The diminutive burro is one of the smartest equine species, lives for 40 years, has excellent pulling power, a calm, loyal character, and is very successful living in harsh environments that a regular horse cannot. Often called the poor man’s horse, the burro today is still prized for its great energy and endurance especially its ability to acclimate to heat and water shortage which is typical throughout much of Mexico.
There are no exact figures for how many burros are in Mexico since the expansion of cities and urban areas have significantly absorbed the burro’s wild habitat. But, according to local ranchers, there are no wild burros in Nayarit. The wild burros exist in the five northern states where it is mostly dessert landscape. Prior to mechanized mining, the burro was used extensively in that industry. Burro enthusiast, Karish said that though some burros escaped during the Gold Rush, many more appeared in the wild after people switched to motorized vehicles as their main form of transportation. As the lead picture shows, burros were Mexico’ first Uber! While the burro is no longer common or necessary, one can still find the burro working in rural and very remote areas.
On the other hand, the National Institute of Statistics and Geography (Negi) revealed that from 1994 to 2016 the number of burros in Mexico was reduced by 61.9%, going from 1.5 million animals to approximately 300,000 in the wild. Some of the causes that could lead this noble species to extinction are the modernization of agricultural work, exploitation of the species, and disinterest in burro conservation. Because Mexico has large scale slaughter facilities, animal activists monitor to see if the wild burro is being poached and taken and sold to kill centers.
For centuries the burro was an important part of Mexican rural life. By the early 2000s the burro had virtually disappeared from the wild. The director of the Jalisco Office of Rural Development, Francisco Lugo Serrano, came up with a plan to repopulate with quality stock. He imported 11 donkeys from the USA to reintroduce strong genetic qualities.
Hopefully, this renewed interest in the lowly Mexican burro will help it survive in the wild. Respecting the burro’s long relationship with rural Mexico’s indigenous people remains an important tradition.
In 2006, the first sanctuary for wild burros was opened in Otumba, State of Mexico. Burrolandia sanctuary is dedicated to the rescue of wild burros, as well those that suffer from abuse and exploitation.
This sanctuary is open to the public. Visitors can go to learn about the burro, learn their history, what the animal needs and get to interact with the animals. The facility has restaurants, and other aspects of a thematic tourist park to help make it self-sustainable.
The song ‘El Burro’ by Cardenales del Exito is a lively piece that celebrates the humble yet indispensable role of the burro. The burro is used extensively to symbolize loyalty, intelligence and hard work in many other songs and literature.
The burro is more than a beast of burden, it is an accurate symbol of a simple but industrious culture. Nothing sums up Mexico as well as burro, tequila and music.
