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Wildlife Conservation
Crash in male saiga antelope numbers drives species closer to extinction
March 31st, 2003
Making use of data gathered from a 10-year field study, scientists reported in the journal Nature that saiga antelope, which rank in the World Conservation Union's category of most endangered species, are being pushed closer to extinction because there are not enough male antelopes to mate with the females - despite the male's polygynous practice of maintaining a harem of 12-30 females. Selective hunting of the male for its horns, used in traditional Chinese medicine, has led to a gender bias where females outnumber males by a ratio of 100:1. Dr. E.J. Milner-Gulland, lead author of the study, based in the Department of Environmental Science...
Source: Life Science Weekly (2003-03-31)
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