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Reproductive collapse in saiga antelope harems

Author

Listed:
  • E. J. Milner-Gulland

    (Imperial College London)

  • O. M. Bukreeva

    (Department of Hunting Management)

  • T. Coulson

    (University of Cambridge)

  • A. A. Lushchekina

    (A. N. Severtsov Institute of Ecology and Evolution)

  • M. V. Kholodova

    (A. N. Severtsov Institute of Ecology and Evolution)

  • A. B. Bekenov

    (Institute of Zoology, Ministry of Education)

  • I. A. Grachev

    (Institute of Zoology, Ministry of Education)

Abstract

A common assumption is that breeding in polygnous systems is not limited by the number of males because one male can inseminate many females1,2. But here we show that reproductive collapse in the critically endangered saiga antelope (Saiga tatarica tatarica) is likely to have been caused by a catastrophic drop in the number of adult males in this harem-breeding ungulate, probably due to selective poaching for their horns. Fecundity and calf survival are known to be affected by markedly skewed sex ratios3, but in the saiga antelope the sex ratio has become so distorted as to lead to a drastic decline in the number of pregnancies — a finding that has implications both for the conservation of the species and for understanding the reproductive ecology of polygynous ungulates.

Suggested Citation

  • E. J. Milner-Gulland & O. M. Bukreeva & T. Coulson & A. A. Lushchekina & M. V. Kholodova & A. B. Bekenov & I. A. Grachev, 2003. "Reproductive collapse in saiga antelope harems," Nature, Nature, vol. 422(6928), pages 135-135, March.
    • Handle: RePEc:nat:nature:v:422:y:2003:i:6928:d:10.1038_422135a
    DOI: 10.1038/422135a
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    Cited by:

    1. Oksana Revutskaya & Galina Neverova & Efim Frisman, 2024. "Discrete-Time Model of an Exploited Population with Age and Sex Structures: Instability and the Hydra Effect," Mathematics, MDPI, vol. 12(4), pages 1-28, February.
    2. Chaloupka, Milani & Balazs, George, 2007. "Using Bayesian state-space modelling to assess the recovery and harvest potential of the Hawaiian green sea turtle stock," Ecological Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 205(1), pages 93-109.

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