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Recently, the study of “swirlology” has come to the forefront of analyzing facial hair whorls and forelimb preference in horses. Previously considered a “pseudoscience” without facts to back it up, several studies have been conducted to put data behind the theories and prove that a very small patch of hair can have a very large influence on the forelimb preference of a performance horse.

What’s so special about this small, circular patch of forehead hair located between a horse’s eyes? Plenty, according to researchers. When an equine fetus is in the early stages of development, the facial whorl hairs are the first to develop, forming when the skin stretches across the forehead. These hairs are directly connected to the brain; all other hair on the body grows from follicles.

The study of “trichoglyphs” – scalp hair whorls and handedness in humans – has been present in pediatrics for years. Only in the last few decades has the process progressed to mammals. Let’s look... More