By Helen Briggs
BBC Environment correspondentPublished19 hours ago

https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-57688320

The population of a rare type of antelope has more than doubled since 2019, in a remarkable turn around in fortunes.

According to the first aerial survey in two years, the number of saiga in their Kazakhstan heartland has risen from 334,000 to 842,000.

There were fears the animal was on the brink of extinction following a mass die-off in 2015.

Distressing images of carcasses strewn over the steppes made world headlines.

• Ice-Age antelope poachers kill ranger
• Antelopes dying out in Kazakhstan
• Scientists probe antelope deaths

Following a series of conservation measures, including a government crackdown on poaching, and local and international conservation work, numbers have started to bounce back.

That, together with the natural resilience of the species, gives hope for their future, said Albert Salemgareyev of the Association for…