The Sokhondinsky Reserve in the Trans-Baikal Territory has reported a successful saiga population count conducted during a raid in the reserve's protected zone on November 5-6.
"Approximately 5,000 individuals of this unique species for Russia were counted in the protected zone of the Sokhondinsky Reserve during this period," the reserve's website reported.
The species is listed in the Red Book of Russia.
The reserve previously reported that, according to monitoring and visual counts of saiga in December 2022, at least 3,500 individuals were observed in the protected zone.
As the portal "Wild Nature of Russia" notes, the data from the November count of this year indicates "positive changes in the state of the region's ecosystem and successful measures for the protection of this species."
The saiga, or Mongolian gazelle, inhabits the Trans-Baikal Territory, where several sedentary peripheral groups have formed.
"It is a highly gregarious migratory species, inhabiting steppe plains and low mountains of East Asia. It uses almost all forms of land relief, preferring river valleys and basins of large lakes," notes "Wild Nature of Russia".
The saiga population in the country as a whole numbers over 20,000 individuals. The Daursky and Sokhondinsky reserves, as well as the federal reserves "Dolina Dzereena" and "Tsasucheysky Bor," play a crucial role in the restoration of saiga in Russia.
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