According to Vladimir Kalmykov, Director of the Stepnoi Reserve in Astrakhan province, Russia, three saiga males from the 'Saigak' breeding centre at the Astrakhan State Experimental Hunting Enterprise will be collared and released into Stepnoi in late November 2017. The GPS collars will allow researchers to track the animals' movements for some time. This is one of 130 measures listed for action under the Year of Ecology in Astrakhan province. Another measure is the formation of a special team of rangers to protect saigas in the north-western pre-Caspian area and saigas entering Astrakhan province from the Volga-Ural population in Kazakhstan..        

The Saigak Nursery was founded in 2003 and currently contains 31 saigas (9 males and 22 females). In 2013 the first two saigas were collared and released in Astrakhan province (see Saiga News 18). The satellite data confirmed that wild antelopes accepted the released saigas  into their herd.     

According to Kalmykov, the number of saigas in the north-western pre-Caspian population (Astrakhan province and the Republic of Kalmykia) does not exceed 4,500 individuals. However, recently the population decline has stopped and in 2016 an increase in the number of males was even recorded, which is a very positive sign. 'Our primary task now is to conserve saigas throughout its range in the north-western pre-Caspian area, mainly through eliminating poaching. Last year not a single violation of nature conservation regulations was recorded in the Stepnoy Reserve,' added Vladimir Kalmykov.

See more at: https://punkt-a.info/news/obshhestvo-i-proisshestvija/trekh-saygakov-v-elektronnykh-osheynikakh-vypustyat-v-astrakhanskoy-oblasti, http://fresh-news.org/oshestvo/262515-saygakov-v-elektronnyh-osheynikah-vypustyat-v-astrahanskoy-oblasti.html, http://jilkin.ru/news/v-astrahanskoy-oblasti-v-god-ekologii-budut-ohranyat-saygakov-i-ptic

Saiga male in watering place in Stepnoi Reserve. Photo by Eugeny Polonsky