Tag: ungulates

edge-of-existence-edge:

Perhaps because the saiga gathers into such large groups to migrate and give birth, they are extremely vulnerable to disease.   Between 1980 and 2014 there have been multiple mass die-offs of saiga herds due to disease, showing a contrast to their high reproductive rate.  In the summer of 2015, another mass die-off occurred, this one taking the lives of over 120,000 saiga, or nearly half the world population.  The cause of this devastating occurrence has still not been determined