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Climate change blamed for death of 200,000 Kazakh antelopes
Nearly half of the world's population of the saiga, an antelope in Kazakhstan, were wiped out by a freak pathogen last year
The saiga antelope has been around longer than the mammoth, is on the brink of extinction
Over 200,000 of the saiga, a small antelope native to central Asia, died over the course of two weeks in Kazakhstan's Betpak-Dala region in May, pushing the critically endangered species to the brink of extinction.
In the run-up to this year's breeding season, scientists say that toxins may have been responsible for the sudden deaths. This toxin is produced by an otherwise common bacterium that lives harmlessly in the respiratory tract of the saiga.
They say unusual weather - an exceptionally cold winter followed by a very wet spring - may have caused toxins produced by the Pasteurella bacteria to cause fatal internal bleeding in the animals organs. Such rapid temperature fluctuations, the scientists say, are caused by climate change
"Climate may have had a role to play in this," professor Richard Kock at the Royal Veterinary College in London said, speaking to Al Jazeera.
"This disease has been associated with domestic animals when there has been a storm or sudden drop of temperature," he added.
According to the researchers, female saigas and their calves were hit the hardest. Within hours of showing symptoms, which included diarrhoea and frothing at the mouth, the animals died.
