The konik - a small Polish horse, a kind of semi-wild pony.
In Poland these horses are called koniks, this word comes from the Polish diminutive for a horse, but refers to several breeds.
These koniks show many primitive features, for example some breeds have the dun coat and dorsal stripe.

In 1936, professor Tadeusz Vetulani of Poznañ University began attempts to breed the extinct tarpan back to its original state. To achieve this he used ponies from Bi³goraj area descended from wild tarpans (given to local peasants in 19th century) crossbred with domestic horses. The Polish government commandeered all the koniks, which displayed tarpan-like features. The result of this selective breeding programme is that semi-wild herds of koniks can be seen today in many nature reserves and parks.