5 Chervontsev Striped hyena

Part of Russia's long-running "Red Book" wildlife series, this issue belongs to a program that has documented endangered species on circulating bimetallic coinage since the early 1990s. The striped hyena's inclusion reflects its precarious status across Central Asia and the Caucasus, where habitat loss and persecution have reduced populations to scattered remnants — including a small, poorly monitored group within Russian borders near Dagestan.