The Dzungarians, as the dominant tribe, often harassed the other three tribes, forcing them to seek a new life elsewhere. Thus the Khoshuts migrated to Tsinghai and became the forerunners of the modern Tsinghai Mongols, while the larger and more powerful Torghuts decided to migrate to the west.
當時的準格爾部勢力強悍，常常欺凌其他三部，逼使他們不得不另謀發展，例如和碩特人大舉遷往青海，成為現在「青海蒙胞」的前身，而部族規模龐大、實力也不錯的土爾扈特人則興起了「西遷」的念頭。