From the Brink of Death, Saiga Population Begins to Grow After "Silent" Spring

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[url=http://www.nytimes.com/2016/06/21/science/saigas-kazakhstan.html?_r=1]Source[/url]
[quote]It was a silent spring for saiga antelopes last year.

Within a few weeks in May in Kazakhstan, a mysterious illness claimed the lives of more than 200,000 of the endangered animals, or over 60 percent of the species.

This spring scientists and conservationists around the world waited anxiously to see whether the die-off would be repeated. Not only has May come and gone with no epidemic, but newly published results from an April census revealed that the saigas are making modest gains in population.

In particular, the Betpak-Dala saiga population in central Kazakhstan, which was hit hardest by the epidemic, grew from 31,000 after the die-off to 36,000 by April, said Steffen Zuther, who coordinates the Altyn Dala Conservation Initiative, a large-scale conservation program in central Kazakhstan.

“It’s fantastic news,” said Stephanie Ward, a representative of Britain’s Royal Society for the Protection of Birds, a partner in the conservation program. She attributed the population growth to the Kazakh government’s effort to combat poaching for meat and male saiga horns, which are prized in Chinese traditional medicine.

“Some of us were worried initially that the saiga horn would go up in value and really put pressure on the remaining antelope,” Ms. Ward said, “but the Kazakh government has risen to the challenge.”[/quote]