BAGHDAD — A Facebook post last month putting up for sale several gazelles has raised questions on whether the Iraqi authorities are doing enough to protect this endangered species.

The post, put up by Ahmad Ahmad, a user who sells animals online under what looks like a fake name, offered several endangered gazelles. Online sales of rare animals are common in Iraq, where a Facebook page for the sale of Goitered Gazelles originates.

A rare and endangered species globally, the Goitered Gazelle gets its name from an enlargement of the neck and throat in male gazelles during the mating season. They are found in Iraq, Afghanistan, Central Asia and northwest China and Mongolia. According to the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s (IUCN) Red List, which monitors endangered species, the Goitered Gazelle is a vulnerable species whose population has declined by 30% in the last 14 years. IUCN estimates that there are between 42,000 and 49,000 Goitered Gazelles in the world. The main threats to this species are illegal hunting, for meat and to a lesser extent for trophies, and habitat loss due to economic development or conversion to agriculture.

Although the press and social media users’ comments indicate that the gazelles put up for sale are likely coming from the Diyala Reserve for Gazelles in eastern Iraq, near the Iranian border, the reserve officials deny that this is the case.