Russian Farmers Urge Putin to Stop Antelope Invasion

Farmers in Russia’s Saratov region have appealed to President Vladimir Putin for urgent intervention as a massive influx of saiga antelopes from Kazakhstan continues to ravage their farmland.

In a message shared widely on Telegram farming channels, the farmers warned that the antelope population in Russia has surged to nearly one million, with around 500,000 crossing into the Saratov region alone in late May. The saigas have trampled crops, drowned in local rivers—polluting water sources—and now threaten the region’s agricultural future.

“We hope for your understanding and assistance in resolving this situation, which threatens the very existence of agriculture in our region,” the appeal to Putin read.

Saratov, situated along the Volga River, is Russia’s sixth-largest grain-producing region, contributing about 3.5 percent of the nation’s total grain harvest with four million metric tons annually.

Hunting or culling saigas remains illegal in Russia due to their near-extinction status in the 1990s. As such, farmers say they are unprotected, with no insurance coverage for saiga-related crop damage, as the species is not officially listed as an agricultural pest.

A separate letter to Putin, signed by several of the region’s top farm leaders and obtained by Reuters, emphasized the urgency for policy action.

In response, the Saratov Ministry of Agriculture has begun assessing the damage and is working on ways to support affected farmers.

The rise in saiga numbers is viewed globally as a conservation success. Once down to 25,000 in the 1990s, Kazakhstan’s Grain Union now estimates 4 to 4.5 million saigas roam Central Asia.

“Their migration area has significantly expanded,” said Evgeny Karabanov of the Kazakhstan Grain Union. “No one is asking them for passports.”