arrested on the criminal charge of smuggling endangered species products from Hongkong. More details are at http://news.dayoo.com/shenzhen/201005/12/73439_1274599 2.htm population fluctuations, overgrazing and hunting. Exposure to livestock diseases has also been proposed as a potential threat to the Mongolian saiga. A review of the literature reveals that health evaluation studies on Mongolian saiga antelopes are lacking. Therefore, this preliminary study to determine the degree of exposure of Mongolian saigas to infectious diseases of domestic ruminants is a crucial first step towards exploring disease dynamics and preventing disease transmission in wildlife. Scientists in Kazakhstan have hypothesized that saigas that graze in proximity to livestock may be exposed to infectious diseases that are present in livestock. Lundervold (2004 2 ) reported that all cattle, sheep and goat herds tested in Kazakhstan showed exposure to foot and mouth disease (FMD), blue tongue virus (BTV), epizootic hemorrhagic disease virus (EHDV), peste-des-petits-ruminants virus (PPRV) and Brucella, indicating high potential risks of transmitting these diseases from domestic to wild ruminants in the region. In August 2006, the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) in collaboration with the Institute of Biology, Mongolian Academy of Sciences, fitted radio-collars for the first time on adult Mongolian saiga within the Sharga Nature Reserve (see SN#4). This work focused on capturing and collaring saiga to understand movements and survival, but during capture, blood samples were collected from the jugular vein of eight individuals (7 adult females and 1 calf). Collected blood samples were processed and separated for serum. These samples were stored at -20 0 C in Mongolia until 2009 when they were transported frozen to the United States for In Pallasovsk district of Volgograd province, Russian Federation, border guards at Elton village stopped a car in which a saiga carcass and a rifle were found. The detained people attempted to escape during the check, but after a two- hour chase the car was stopped. During arrest, the driver and passenger offered further resistance. The files on this incident have been submitted to the Department of Hunting of Volgograd province for a decision as to whether to proceed with a criminal prosecution. Further details are at http://v1.ru/newsline/274670.html . 22 April 2010 At the Elista checkpoint, traffic police inspectors stopped a vehicle, in the boot of which they found a saiga carcass and 20 saiga horns. These were confiscated and an investigation is under way. Based on a report in Izvestia Kalmykii, 27 April 2010. China May 2010 The Huanggang customs in Shenzhen, South China have seized 22 saiga horns with an estimated value of 650,000 RMB (approximately 100,000 USD). Two suspects were The Mongolian saiga (Saiga tatarica mongolica) is one of the endangered species in the Altai-Sayan region of western Mongolia. Surveys completed by WWF-Mongolia and the Institute of Biology estimated the total Mongolian population at 2,950 individuals in 1998, rising to 5,240 in 2000. More recent surveys in and around the Sharga Nature Reserve (Gobi-Altai Aimag) recorded 4,938 (95% CI 2,762- 8,828) saigas in a 4,524 -km 2 study area in 2006 and 7,221 (95% CI 4,380-11,903) saigas in a 4,678- km 2 study area in 2007. Threats to the Mongolian saiga population may include changing environmental conditions, natural Articles A study of the exposure of the Mongolian saiga antelope (Saiga tatarica mongolica) to livestock diseases Enkhtuvshin Shiilegdamba 1 , Amanda E. Fine 1 , Bayarbaatar Buuveibaatar 2 , Badamjav Lhagvasuren 2* , Kim Murray 1 and Joel Berger 1 1 Wildlife Conservation Society, 2 Institute of Biology, Mongolian Academy of Sciences, *WWF Mongolia Program Office, eshiilegdamba@wcs.org A saiga male killed by poachers. Photos by Anatoly Khludnev Issue 11, Summer 2010 10 2 Available in the PhD thesis archive at www.iccs.org.uk A restrained Mongolian saiga during field capture and collaring in 2006. Photo by Kim Murray