They look like something drawn
by Dr Seuss, but saiga antelopes
are a real thing. Unfortunately, we
can't be sure if they will be a thing
for much longer, because at the
current rate they could be extinct
within a few weeks, at least in the
wild.
Saiga antelopes are not
particularly rare for a large
mammal, with well over 100,000
surviving. However, they have
been classified as endangered
since hunting slashed their
numbers by at least three quarters
in the 1990s, after the breakup of
the Soviet Union weakened
poaching controls. In the past few
weeks an estimated 85,000 have
died, and that figure, released on
Friday , may already be out of date.
Worse still, no one knows why.
In 2014, a study by the
government of Kazakstahn
reported just over a quarter of a
million saiga in the country. A
smaller number live in Russia and
Mongolia, which so far have not
been reported to have
been affected in the same way.
A fortnight ago, reports appeared
of dead saiga being found . Since
then, the number of deaths
has risen terrifyingly quickly, from
hundreds, to thousands, to now
tens of thousands . Less Dr Seuss
and more horror movie.
A bacterial infection
called pasteurellosis is considered
to be the most likely cause, but
experts in animal disease are
flying in to investigate further. The
Kazak ministry of agriculture says
that large die-offs have happened
before, but the loss of a third of a
population in such a short time is
almost unprecedented, not just for
saiga, but for any long-lived
species. It is unclear why a
disease that was already
widespread among saigas, and
usually only killed those weakened
by lack of food or other diseases,
should turn lethal so quickly.
“It’s shaping up to be a complete
catastrophe,” EJ Milner-Gulland,
head of the Saiga Conservation
Alliance told the Guardian. She
added, “I’m afraid the animals are
still dying and we are not actually
getting a final number yet. I’m
expecting that number to go up
quite substantially in the coming
days.”
The saiga have rebounded from
population crashes before, having
dropped as low as 21,000 after
poaching peaked in 2003.
Population crashes reduce genetic
diversity, potentially making
species more vulnerable to new
diseases or mutated versions of
old ones. On the other hand, the
saiga's residence in regions prone
to bitter winters and severe
droughts has created a capacity to
breed quickly when good times
come along.

source: http://www.iflscience.com/plants-and-animals/saiga-antelopes-dying-unprecedented-rates

kk

brb

All I see is meat