AKIPRESS.COM - Merely 3,800 Mongolian Saiga antelopes, a critically endangered species, existed in Mongolia at the end of 2018, down nearly 40 percent year on year, according to the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF)-Mongolia.

The decline is mainly due to drought-related food shortage, WWF-Mongolia Director Dorjgurkhem Batbold told Xinhua.

"The Saiga antelope population of Mongolia has been very unstable for many years. Several factors, including infectious diseases, harsh weather conditions and poaching, have negatively affected the growth of the population," said Batbold.

The species' population has suffered a roller coaster since 2001 when its number declined to only 750 following a summer drought and a harsh winter, he said.