Towards Restoration of the Przewalski Horse and its Ecosystem in Western Mongolia

Blueprint

ASSESS

After an initial IUCN Red List assessment of Extinct in the Wild in 1970, the conservation status of Przewalski’s Horse was regularly assessed by the IUCN SSC Equid Specialist Group. Thanks to conservation efforts of several NGOs and the Mongolian Government, reintroduction of two populations in central and southern Mongolia led to it being assessed as Critically Endangered in 2005 and Endangered in 2011. Nevertheless, the reintroduced population size remained small and isolated by distance. TAKH Association, a Przewalski’s Horse conservation organisation based in France, assessed the Khomyn Tal region (Zavkhan, western Mongolia) as a potential new reintroduction site during 1999–2001 in partnership with WWF Mongolia. It consisted of vegetation and fauna (ungulates and birds) surveys, and interviews of local herders.

PLAN

The Khomyn Tal region assessment as a third reintroduction site concluded that 1) the local community and the Mongolian state support the project; 2) the site is important for reproduction of several iconic bird species; and 3) degraded vegetation has the potential to recover if grazing pressure is relaxed. Based on this, translocation for reintroduction was planned from the French ex situ population to Khomyn Tal using the IUCN Guidelines for Reintroductions and Other Conservation Translocations (2013). The main issue was to develop a plan for translocating existing social groups (harem and bachelor) in order to reduce stress and increase individual survival in their new environment. Restoration of vegetation was an important goal of the recovery plan, so that pasture management was planned for the entire area. Transfer of the management and monitoring of this reintroduced population to a Mongolian NGO was also planned.

ACT

Khomyn Tal was recognised as an important area for nature conservation in 2001: it became an Important Bird Area and was classified as a buffer zone of a neighbouring National Park (Khar Us Nuur). Exclusive grazing for Przewalski’s Horses was implemented in a 14,000 ha core area of Khomyn Tal through an agreement with the local government and TAKH Association, France. The release site is bordered by the Zavkhan river and the Seer small mountain ranges, but was partly fenced in order to avoid grazing by domestic livestock and hybridisation with domestic horses. The ideal stocking rate for the whole Khomyn Tal region was estimated and it concluded that the domestic herd size must be reduced to match the habitat’s overall carrying capacities in order to recover degraded rangeland. To counteract this constraint, alternative economic activities were discussed with the local community during the consecutive consultation forums on an annual basis. Then, reintroduction occurred in 2004 and 2005 from the socially natural population established by the TAKH Association in France. A total of 22 individuals distributed in four harem groups (3–4 females and a stallion respectively) and five bachelors were translocated into the release site. The first acclimatisation phase was implemented during the first weeks after release, into a 15 ha fenced area where insect and wind shelters were deployed. A Mongolian NGO, Khomyn Talin Takhi (KTT), was created in 2014 and became manager of the reintroduced population in 2017.

Results

Social structure of the ex situ population was maintained in the release site, which is a remarkable result for translocation of such a social species. After little expansion the first seven years, the population grew rapidly from 2011 and reached 120 individuals in July 2021, with a total wild population in Mongolia of about 850 individuals. The overall ecosystem conditions have greatly improved — wild sea buckthorn forests along the Zavkhan river have extended from 100 to 1,000 hectares by 2020 and grass cover has significantly increased. As a consequence of protection status and vegetation restoration, the number of wild ungulates, including the regionally threatened Saïga, Mongolian Gazelle, Black-tailed Gazelle, and Siberian Ibex have also increased significantly, in some cases more than doubling. Thanks to continuous cooperation with and involvement of local herders, community pride of the reintroduction programme has increased, including local participation in conservation activities such as volunteer ranger patrolling, preserving riparian forests and information sharing. To secure ecosystem quality for the future free-roaming Przewalski’s Horse populations, other wild ungulates, and birds, the Mongolian Government has established the Khomyn Tal National Park, with a total area of 4,110 sq km, in May 2020.