Rare Antelope May Vanish in 5 Years, Group Warns

A rare species of Tibetan antelope whose fur is used to make expensive shahtoosh shawls will disappear within five years if nothing is done to protect it, an environmental group said Wednesday.

The antelope--which has seen its numbers dwindle from several million a century ago to 75,000 today--is still hunted in China and its fur is openly sold in India and Britain, the International Fund for Animal Welfare said.

The U.S.-based group estimates that the antelope, called a chiru and found on the high plateaus of Tibet and Central Asia, is being killed at a rate of 20,000 per year.

The animal is sought for its fur, which is used to make a lightweight wool called shahtoosh. A shahtoosh shawl can sell for more than $17,000, the group said.

The United States and 142 other nations have signed the Convention on the International Trade in Endangered Species, which outlaws trade in shahtoosh.

The International Fund for Animal Welfare conducted an eight-month investigation into illegal poaching of the antelope.

Poachers, mostly Chinese farmers, use vehicle lights to startle the antelope, which resembles a cross between a deer and a German shepherd, then shoot it with machine guns, the group said.