Kazakhstani researcher receives prestigious award in the field of nature protection

Albert Salemgareev, a leading specialist of the Kazakhstan Association for the Conservation of Biodiversity (ACBK), became one of the winners of the prestigious international Whitley Awards of the British charity Whitley Fund for Nature (WFN) for his contribution to Kazakhstan's efforts to preserve the saiga population, a key species in Central Asian steppe ecosystems, whose numbers exceed 1.3 million individuals in 2022, the Kazakhstan Embassy in the UK reports.

Albert has been studying saigas since 2006, leading a satellite tagging program by fitting collars with special transmitters to individuals. Since 2009, a total of 186 animals have been tagged and the data has contributed to an understanding of the animals' seasonal movements and their concentration sites during calving and rutting. The data were used in the creation of the Altyn Dala Nature Reserve and the expansion of the Irgiz-Torgay State Nature Reserve. Maps of animal migration routes are used in the planning of road infrastructure to reduce the risk of their negative impact.
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Albert's many years of work to assist the Government of Kazakhstan in saiga conservation was a worthy reason for his nomination for the prize. The awards ceremony was held at the Royal Geographical Society to mark the Foundation's 30th anniversary. The award was presented to the winners by WFN's patron, the Royal Princess Anne of the UK. The winners received an award of £40,000 to develop their projects.