Bring back Ice Age antelope

A solitary wolf howls, a thousand ears prick up. The dull thuds of hooves on frozen earth stop silent as big dark eyes scan the horizon. Nothing. After a few nervous moments, the shaggy herd of Ice Age antelope return to their grazing, breath bellowing out like smoke from their floppy noses as it hits the ice-cold air.

The Ice Age antelope we speak of is the Saiga. It once roamed with woolly rhino and mammoth but unlike the bigger more famous herbivores, this blast from the past is still with us today and playing a critical role on Kazakhstan’s Altyn Dala or 'Golden Steppe'. This vast grassland is where wild ass graze, wolves hunt and eagles soar. Its wetlands are a stopover for 10 million migratory birds, such as the rare sociable Lapwing and the Siberian Crane.

Following decades of poaching, habitat loss, and disease, Saiga were pushed to the brink of extinction. Since 2005, we’ve been part of a team working with the Kazakhstan government which has transformed their fortunes and on July 1st, 2022, an expanse of steppe grassland spanning over 650,000 hectares was designated as a Protected Area. Good news for Saiga, but also all the other birds and wildlife who live there.

The antelopes’ striking features have made them vulnerable in a few ways. The males’ bumpy, upright horns are highly valued in Chinese medicine. Some believe the horns can treat a cold or soothe a sore throat. In the 2000s, they were poached to near extinction and it's a problem we’re still fighting today.

A nasal virus further impacted on their numbers in 2015, killing around 200,000. Although not clear at the time, we now believe that the unusually warm and humid weather helped the virus to spread, so moving forward, climate change could pose a real threat to them.

Recently, because of these combined issues, Saiga Antelope numbers plummeted to a historic low of just 50,000.

The Saiga are a critical part of the balance of life on the Kazakh Steppe. These hardy travellers feed on over 100 different plant species, and when they poo, they spread the nutrients and seeds locked in the plants far and wide on their long migrations. Their continuous grazing provides an essential food source for predators like wolves, and even Steppe Eagles, who will both hunt the Saiga when they get hungry. Their relentless munching reduces the vegetation which can also help prevent wildfires, a serious threat to the steppes of Central Asia.

In the Protected Area’s fields of feathergrass and tulips, we’ll be able to monitor other threatened creatures such as the endangered Siberian Cranes, Kulan (wild ass), and Egyptian Vultures. We can also check on the many migratory birds who visit each year, including almost the entire population of sociable Lapwing as well as the endangered White-headed Duck. 

With your help, things are looking up for the Saiga. The results from the April 2022 aerial census show that there are now over one million living in Kazakhstan. The Protected Area in the Ural region of western Kazakhstan is their largest calving site and our latest aerial census shows that it hosts 800,000 of the country’s 1.32 million saiga.

With your support we’re working with the Government of Kazakhstan, and our international partners such as BirdLife International, to create areas where antelopes, and other animals can safely migrate and give birth. This will enhance nearly 5 million hectares of Protected Areas and ecological corridors across Kazakhstan which, combined, will give many of the next generation of Saiga, and a wealth of other wildlife, a chance to thrive.

The Kazakh Steppe is not the only region in hot water. In fact, across the globe, we are facing worrying biodiversity loss. The success of species in Protected Areas such as Kazakhstan's show that together, we can make a change and stand up for nature. It’s not too late.