Title
Distribution and Population Dynamics of Ungulates in the Mongolian Gobi
Author(s)
Buuveibaatar, Bayarbaatar
Published
2016
Abstract
The Mongolian Gobi desert ecosystem is one of the most spectacular and important
regions in Central Asia, which supports a large assemblage of migratory plains ungulates. In
recent years, a growing human population, expanding exploitation of natural resources, and
the development of infrastructure in the region place increasing pressure on these species and
their habitats. However, the current status and ecology of many of these species remains
unknown or data deficient, requiring an urgent need for research to assess how they are
responding to an increasing human footprint on the landscape. The overarching goal of my
research is to increase understandings of Mongolian saiga (Saiga tatarica mongolica),
Asiatic wild ass (or khulan, Equus hemionus), and goitered gazelles (Gazelle subgutturosa)
inhabiting Mongolian Gobi desert, whose populations are threatened by the recent and rapid
environmental and economic changes occurring across their ranges.
Habitat selection for calving by ungulates is an important behavioral trait as it affects
neonate survival. To identify factors that influence birth location selection of Mongolian
saiga, I used four years of data collected in and around Sharga Nature Reserve in western
Mongolia. I found multiple factors explain calving location selection by saiga antelopes and
individual saiga females preferred calving locations that were away from settlements and
closer to water sources and avoided steeper slopes. These results demonstrate that the choice
of calving locations and grouping patterns of saiga antelope is driven by both internal and
external factors.
Keywords
Mongolia;ungulate;Gobi;conservation;development
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PUB16234