Species Use Database

Saiga antelope
Saiga tatarica

Used for Food and feed, Medicine and hygiene and Ceremony and ritual expression in Mongolia

A. Species

Scientific name: Saiga tatarica

Common name(s): Saiga antelope

Global IUCN Red List Threat Status: Critically Endangered


B. Location of use

Geographic location(s):

  • Mongolia

Country/Region: Malaysia / Peninsula Malaysia


C. Scale of assessment

Scale of assessment: Sub-national / Sub-region / Sub-State

Name/Details of location: 152 Shops across the States of: Johor, Kedah, Kelantan, Melaka, Negeri Sembilan, Pahang, Penang, Perak, Perlis,


D. Timescale of use

Start Year: 2018

End Year: 2018


E. Information about the use

How is the wild species sourced?: Wild species sourced from its natural habitat

Type of use: Extractive

Practice of use: Trading of horn hunted elsewhere

Lethal or non-lethal: Lethal

Does this use involve take/extraction of: The whole entire organism

Purpose(s) of end use: Food and feed, Medicine and hygiene and Ceremony and ritual expression

Motivation of use: Income generation from trade (individual/household/community) and Largescale commercial exploitation for trade

Is this use legal or illegal?: Some use is legal and some is illegal


F. Information about the Users

Which stakeholder(s) does the record primarily focus on?: Local people and International external


G. Information about the sustainability of use

Is there evidence that the use is having an impact on the target species?: Wild species sourced from its natural habitat

Has an assessment (or judgement) of sustainability of the use of the target species from an ecological perspective been recorded?: Yes, considered unsustainable

Details of assessment carried out: Study takes its premise of severely declining saiga populations from the IUCN SSC Antelope Specialist Group, 2018.

Brief summary on why the use has been assessed/judged to be sustainable or unsustainable: The use of horn in CTM is judged unsustainable because. As of January 2018, the global population of Saiga Antelopes was estimated at just 164,600–165,600 (IUCN SSC Antelope Specialist Group, 2018), which is an estimated 95% decline since the 1900s.

Has an assessment (or judgement) of sustainability of the use of the target species from an economic perspective been recorded?: Yes, considered unsustainable

Details of assessment carried out: this study

Brief summary on why the use has been assessed/judged to be sustainable or unsustainable: The study recommends that a detailed inventory on the stocks and consumption of Saiga Antelope horns in Malaysia would also provide better and more accurate insights into current consumption and demand patterns, to guide awareness raising and demand reduction-related activities, as appropriate.

Has an assessment (or judgement) of sustainability of the use of the target species from a social perspective been recorded?: Yes, considered unsustainable

Details of assessment carried out: this study

Brief summary on why the use has been assessed/judged to be sustainable or unsustainable: The study recommends that a detailed inventory on the stocks and consumption of Saiga Antelope horns in Malaysia would also provide better and more accurate insights into current consumption and demand patterns, to guide awareness raising and demand reduction-related activities, as appropriate. These efforts should be undertaken collaboratively between governments, NGOs and, importantly, with the traditional Chinese medicine dealers and practitioners in the country.

Has an assessment (or judgement) of sustainability of the use of the target species from a human health perspective been recorded?: Yes, considered unsustainable

Details of assessment carried out: this study

Brief summary on why the use has been assessed/judged to be sustainable or unsustainable: saiga horn used in TCM but Western medicine does not corroborate benefits

Has an assessment (or judgement) of sustainability of the use of the target species from an animal health/welfare perspective been recorded?: not recorded

Details of assessment carried out: study does not investigate

Brief summary on why the use has been assessed/judged to be sustainable or unsustainable: study does not investigate


Recommendations provided in the record to maintain or enhance the sustainability of the use of the target species

The study recommends that a detailed inventory on the stocks and consumption of Saiga Antelope horns in Malaysia would also provide better and more accurate insights into current consumption and demand patterns, to guide awareness raising and demand reduction-related activities, as appropriate. These efforts should be undertaken collaboratively between governments, NGOs and, importantly, with the traditional Chinese medicine dealers and practitioners in the country.


Record source

Information about the record source: scientific_pub

Date of publication/issue/production: 2019-01-01T00:00:00+0000

Source Reference(s):

Lalita Gomez and Kanitha Krishnasamy (2019). A rapid assessment of the trade in Saiga Antelope horn in Peninsular Malaysia. TRAFFIC Bulletin, 31(1), 35.

Date of record entry: 2022-11-28