Research Archives - The Altai Project

Snow leopard surprise in eastern Mongolia

March 8th, 2023

Snow leopard ascends a steep rocky slope

The recent discovery of a snow leopard in Mongolia’s Ikh Nart Nature Reserve—more than 250 km (155 miles) from the nearest known population—is one of the easternmost observations of the species and has big implications for understanding the species and improving conservation planning. Although Ikh Nart is in a region assessed to be a low-quality…

Steppe eagles

August 26th, 2022

Long-term study sheds light on Steppe eagle migration It’s a rough, but mostly routine, journey for Steppe eagles (Aquila nipalensis) migrating to their winter abodes, according to results of a four-year study. In May 2022 Russia-based ornithologists announced the results of a conservation project launched in 2018 that centered on the Steppe eagle and focused…

Wild Altai volunteer fieldwork

February 28th, 2022

Learn about volunteer opportunities to conduct field work in Russian Altai.

Altaian Raptors in Action

October 26th, 2019

Steppe eagle with GPS tracker on its back

Here are some images of Altai’s many different raptor species and a few other special appearances.

Lake Kindyktykul

February 19th, 2015

Climbing up above the lake (photo by A. Rhodes)

Lake Kindyktykul (“Kin-dik-tik-kool”) borders Chikhachev Ridge in southeastern Altai and is home to over 20 species of endangered birds.

Former Poacher Receives 2015 Disney Conservation Hero Award

January 27th, 2015

The Altai Project is thrilled to announce that Altai’s newest snow leopard protector, Mergen Markov, a former poacher, has been honored with a Disney Conservation Hero Award from Disney Conservation Fund!