50 Tenge Porcupine

Kazakhstan's circulating commemorative wildlife series, of which this porcupine issue is part, was introduced to replace the earlier definitive coinage and draw attention to species native to the Kazakh steppe and surrounding regions. The long-eared hedgehog and steppe eagle appeared in the same program. These were genuine circulation strikes, not collector pieces, though the wildlife subjects have since made them popular with thematic collectors outside Kazakhstan.