- Rabicano
Rabicano, also called white ticking, is a
horse coat color characterized by limited roaning in a specific pattern: interspersed white hairs most dense and originating from the flank and the tailhead.cite book |title=The Lyons Press Horseman's Dictionary: Full Explanations of More than 2,000 Terms and Phrases Used by Horsemen |first=Steven D. |last=Price |coauthors=Jessie Shiers, William Steinkraus |others=Don Burt |publisher=Globe Pequot |year=2007 |pages=175 |isbn=1599210363 |quote=rabicano: A coat color in which a few, scattered white hairs appear amid a darker-colored background, usually on the hindquarters and dock] Rabicano is distinct from true roan, which causes evenly-interspersed white hairs throughout the body, except the head and legs.Etymology
The word "rabicano" is of Spanish origin - "rabo" meaning "tail" and "cano" meaning "white" - thus, it described a horse with white hairs in its tail. Juan de la Cruz Puig. "Antologia de Poetas Argentinos,"1910. pg. 131. "Rabicano: caballo que tiene cerdas blancas á la raíz de la cola." [Rabicano: a horse that has white hairs at the root of the tail] ] This definition is consistent with the modern usage.
The word appears very early in
epic poem s inItalian literature : Araglio, a character inOrlando Innamorato (1495 ), rides a horse named "Rabicano". So too doesAstolfo inOrlando furioso , published in1532 . In Italian, the term simply means "roan" and might therefore have been a descriptive name.Characteristics
The characteristics most often associated with the rabicano pattern are white hairs at the tailhead and the flank, where the body of the horse is joined by the hindquarters. Like other patterns and colors, the expression of the rabicano trait varies. Most of the factors affecting these variations are unknown, however, it is known that horses with a chestnut or chestnut-based coat express white patterns such as rabicano more readily; that is, they tend to have more white.
The original definition of "rabicano" refers to the presence of white hairs in the base of the tail, a characteristic called a "skunk" or "coon" tail.cite web |url=http://www.morgancolors.com/othercolors.htm |title=Rabicano, Roan, Flaxen, and Frame Overo Morgan Horses |work=Morgan Colors |last=Behning |first=Laura |accessdate=2008-08-03] The term "coon tail" is associated with white hairs in the form of rings at the tailhead, while the other terms do not necessarily imply rings. The sides of the tail at the tailhead may have much white hair.
Higher expression of the rabicano pattern on the flanks may produce a coat easy to mistake for true roan. However, in highly-expressed rabicanos, the distribution of white hairs along the barrel may produce faint striping or stippling over the ribs, which is not seen in true roans. Furthermore, the skin of rabicanos may be slightly mottled with pink, particularly on the abdomen and groin.cite web |url=http://www.horsecolor.com/white_mixed/roan/rabicano.htm |title=Rabicano |work=The Horse Colors Site |author=B. Kostelnik |publisher=Hippo-Logistics |accessdate=2008-08-03] This trait is not seen in true roans, and suggests that like the white hairs associated with other white markings and patterns, the white hairs of a rabicano may be rooted in unpigmented skin cells. However, the genetic and developmental controls of such roaning is presently poorly understood,cite web |url=http://www.vgl.ucdavis.edu/services/coatcolor.php |title=Introduction to Coat Color Genetics |publisher=UC Davis |accessdate=2008-08-03 |quote=The inheritance of scattered white hairs, sometimes called roaning, is not defined.] and has not yet be formally studied.cite book |last=Sponenberg |first=Dan Phillip |title=Equine Coat Color Genetics |origdate=1996-01-15 |accessdate=2008-08-03 |edition=2 |date=2003-04-11 |publisher=Wiley-Blackwell |isbn=978-0813807591 |pages=215 |chapter=4/Patterns of White Occurring on Base Colors]
Prevalence and inheritence
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