Elena Bykova wins Whitley Award

Click here to link to the webpage of the Daily Telegraph and its video story of Elena winning one of the Whitley Fund for Nature Awards. Elena is one of the key people involved with the conservation of the Saiga Antelope.

Priority Action Kicks Off for the Antelope from the Eurasian Steppes

Astana/Bonn, 21 February 2011 – Representatives of wildlife management authorities in Kazakhstan and experts came together 17-18 February in central Kazakhstan to discuss the implementation of the CMS Memoranda of Understanding on the Saiga Antelope (Saiga spp.) and the Bukhara Deer (Cervus elaphus bactrianus). The objectives of the Astana workshop convened by the Committee of Forestry and Hunting of the Ministry of Agriculture of Kazakhstan and the UNEP/CMS Secretariat, was to set up the technical coordination for the Saiga Memorandum (MoU), to agree priority activities for saiga conservation in Kazakhstan and to assess the current status of Bukhara Deer populations.

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Engaging the Traditional Chinese Medicine Industry in the Recovery of the Saiga Antelope

Urumqi, China, 29 September - At a workshop on the conservation and sustainable use of the saiga antelope, representatives of the Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) industry – which uses saiga horn in several medical products – confirmed their willingness to do their part in restoring wild saiga populations.

The objective of the workshop, convened by the CITES Management Authority of China and the Secretariats of CITES and CMS in Urumqi, Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, China (27-29 September 2010), was to strengthen international cooperation among consumer and range States and to provide a platform for discussion between those managing in situ or ex situ conservation activities and the Asian traditional medicine industry. The idea of sharing conservation efforts between consumer and range States is reflected in Decisions adopted at the 15th meeting of the Conference of the Parties to CITES (CoP15, Doha, 2010) and has been envisaged since 2006 under the CMS Memorandum of Understanding concerning 'Conservation, Restoration and Sustainable Use of the Saiga Antelope' (CMS Saiga MoU).

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Conservation Boost for 'Ugly Duckling' Antelope

Ulaanbaatar, Bonn, Geneva, 13 September 2010 - Under the leadership of the Convention on Migratory Species (UNEP/CMS), a broad alliance of government representatives from Kazakhstan, Mongolia, the Russian Federation, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan, UN bodies, inter-governmental organizations, non-governmental organizations and local communities have come together to discuss and agree on a new conservation strategy for the Saiga antelope.

During an international conference held in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, the Central Asian States and the Russian Federation agreed this week to include the Mongolian Saiga antelope in an international Saiga agreement concluded under the auspices of CMS. With Mongolia signing the agreement, all Saiga antelopes, will benefit from this international cooperation.

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Mass Saiga Antelope Die-off in Kazakhstan

Bonn, 27 May 2010 - 12,000 saiga antelopes have been reported to have suddenly died in the Ural population in Western Kazakhstan. This dramatic news is a serious blow for the critically endangered species, which suffered a 90% collapse primarily due to poaching in recent decades. The number of dead animals is the equivalent of approximately one third of the entire Ural population according to the most recent spring estimate. The reported die-off took place in mid-May when saiga give birth in mass aggregations of thousands of females. The vast majority of saiga carcasses are females and calves. The cause of this catastrophe is not yet clear. A commission has been set up by the Kazakh authorities to investigate the matter.

A news article dated 1 March 2010 from the Italian newspaper "Corriere della Sera" highlighted the plight of the Saiga Antelope. Click here for the article (in Italian)