I WAS delighted to speak with Gregory Meares this week and learn of the rude health of Queen Of Wolves. This 33-year-old lives with a pony companion and has just spent her 26th winter outdoors, in spite of the atrocious elements.

Gregory managed the Pollmeier’s Knocknagat Stud in Co Waterford until his retirement but he still calls regularly to check up on his old friend. The daughter of Wolver Hollow (by Sovereign Path who was born in 1956) won three races in Ireland when trained by Paddy Mullins for Heinz Pollmeier.

She was an immediate success at stud as her first foal was Black Queen (Bob Back) and she provided her sire with one of his many big race winners when she carried Mr Pollmeier’s colours to success in the 1998 Galway Hurdle, trained by John Kiely and ridden by Shay Barry. At stud she is the dam of Grade 2 winning hurdler Bold Sir Brian (Brian Boru).

While Queen Of Wolves is thriving, so too is Pastorale (Nureyev) who turned 30 last Thursday week. The daughter of Park Appeal (Ahonoora) is a half-sister to the champion Cape Cross (Green Desert) but is better known as the dam of another Darley stalwart, Iffraaj (Zafonic).

Now residing in Ballymany Stud, she lives with her companions, Godolphin’s retired broodmare band in Ireland. She is the oldest of her compatriots which includes the 27-year-olds Grecian Slipper (Sadler’s Wells) and Her Ladyship (Polish Precedent).

I learned that a great favourite of the Banahan family, the 30-year-old Almaaseh, died recently and is buried under a chestnut tree at the family’s Moortown House Stud. Joe and Edel Banahan have a two-year-old Cape Cross (Green Desert) filly to go into training and she is the fourth generation to be in the hands of the family.

The Cape Cross juvenile is out of the Manduro (Monsun) mare Empowermentofwomen, a half-sister to Big Orange (Duke Of Marmalade), winner of the Group 1 Ascot Gold Cup. Their dam Miss Brown To You (Fasliyev) is out of Almaaseh (Dancing Brave) who was owned by Joe Banahan’s late father Percy and she bred the Group 1 winner Military Attack (Oratorio) and is grandam of the Group 1 winner Red Cadeaux (Cadeaux Genereux).

Days later came the news of the death of the great ‘Blue Hen’ mare Hasili (Kahyasi) at Banstead Manor Stud. She was the dam of five Group 1 winners and the leading sire Dansili (Danehill). In all she produced seven group winners including multiple Group 1 winners Banks Hill (Danehill), Heat Haze (Green Desert), Intercontinental (Danehill), Cacique (Danehill) and Champs Elysees (Danehill). Hasili is one of only two broodmares to have produced five Group/Grade 1 winners.

Her achievements were recognised by the Thoroughbred Breeders’ Association in 2006 when she was given the accolade of Broodmare Of The Year. Five of her daughters remain part of the Juddmonte broodmare band and she appears in the pedigrees of more than a quarter of the mares owned by Juddmonte.