Republic of Kalmykia

The relic saiga antelope will be included in the Red Book of Russia

The volume “Animals” of the Red Book of Russia will be republished for the first time in 20 years, the edition will be issued in November-December 2021. Alexander Kozlov, head of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment told TASS.

The edition will include 443 species of animals. Among them – killer whale, saiga, Caspian seal, Beringian fox, Kamchatka subspecies of black-headed marmot.

At the same time from the new edition of the Red Book 122 species of animals will be excluded as well as 22 species of birds, because there is no extinction threat for them any more. These are the Ussuri spotted deer (aboriginal populations), the Daurian hedgehog, the Far Eastern population of the Transbaikal saltwort, the Bald Eagle, the Japanese snipe, the Kamchatka tern, and others.

The new edition will come out in 2,000 copies and will be distributed by region, to the main libraries and institutions. The electronic version will be published on the site of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment of Russia.

Saiga inhabiting the territory of Kalmykia appeared 50-70 thousand years ago, it survived through the mammoth era. Due to the reduction of open steppe landscapes, the expansion of pastures and an increase in human settlements, the range of the saiga has been shrinking.

Now the species is considered to be on the verge of extinction. The animal is listed in the International Red Book. The saiga is also listed in the Red Book of Kalmykia. Saiga is protected in the state reserve “Chernye Zemli” (“Black Lands”) in Kalmykia.