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Camels

Camels

There are two types of Camels, the Arabian camel, or Dromedary has only one hump, but the Bactrian camel has two humps. They are very large mammals, which were often used as draft and saddle animals in the desert regions of Africa and Asia. The Dromedary has a shorter hair coat than the Bactrian. They both have very long legs and their unusual feet are well adapted to walking on the sand or snow. Camels are about seven feet tall at the shoulders. They will mature at about ten to twelve years of age. They provide wool, milk, hides and meat besides being a beast of burden. During the winter months, they grow a thick, shaggy coat, which is shed in the spring. They run with a characteristic pacing gait, with the legs on each side moving together simultaneously. Camels have an extremely keen sense of smell and have the unusual ability to close their nostrils such as during sand storms. They have adapted to their sandy environments by forming double rows of protective eyelashes and haired ear openings. They can be tamed and taught to lead, drive and be ridden. They can spit when annoyed or frightened. They have also been known to bite and kick when threatened. Camels are well known for their ability to survive on sparse vegetation and can even eat thorny plants, leaves and twigs and dried grasses that most animals would not touch. They can store fat from their food in their humps. When they encounter adverse weather conditions, they are able to draw upon the fat not only for sustenance, but also for the manufacture of water by oxidizing the fat. Thus they can go without drinking or eating for several days. Some have been known to go between two and three weeks without water and still survive. Baby camels are born without a hump because the layer of fat does not develop until they start eating solid foods. An adult camel can drink about thirty gallons of water in about ten minutes. Camels are usually a golden or caramel color, although there are also various degrees of white to black and even some spotted colors. Camels can be expected to live forty to sixty years so owning a camel is a lifetime commitment.