Dromedary Camel

Camelidae

Dromedary camels have a single hump with their head and body length being 10 feet.  Shoulder height is 6-7 feet and their adult weight is from 1000 to 1500 pounds.  They lave long, slender legs inding in 2 toes beneath which is a broad, callous and elastic pad.  Their neck and head are both elongated and they the upper lip is deeply cleft.  They have a short tail, heavily lashed eyes, haired ears, slit-like nostrils and are fawn or beige in color.  Their coat is smooth and shorter than that of the Bactrian camel but equally woolly.

The species exists only in the domesticated state today in Arabia and has been introduced into other regions of the world.  They eat almost anything that grows in the desert, including salty plants rejected by other grazers.  When hungry, they will eat fish, meat, bones and skin.  Their diet in captivity includes hay and grains plus vitamin and mineral supplements.

Females may breed every other year.  A single calf, rarely two, is born after a gestation period of 13 months and can move freely by the end of the first day.  The mother nurses the young for one year with maturity being at 3-5 years.  Life span is 30-40 years.

Everything is adapted for life on the desert.  Feet are broadened to walk on sand, eyelashes protect eyes from wind-blown sand, nostrils close to keep sand out, lips are thickened to withstand the coarsest of desert plants, coloration matches the environment, callouses are present on knees and other parts of the body that touch the hot sand when the animal sits down.  The hump is a flesh mound not supported by bones which stores a reserve of fat (not water).  The hump size varies with food supply and working conditions.  They can tolerate a rise in temperature of 12 degrees Fahrenheit and exhibit unusual tolerance for dehydration.  They are able to drink brackish or salt water.  Most animals perish when 20% of their body weight is lost but camels survive a 40% loss of body weight without serious consequences.  Heavy fur and the fatty hump serve to insulate the body, preventing body temperature from rising to the sweating point (the major cause of water loss).  When water again becomes available, camels are able to restore their body water quickly;  they have been known to drink 1/3 of their body weight in 10 minutes.

Camels run like a giraffe with both legs on one side of the body moving simultaneously with a rocking, shuffling gait.  They can spit foul-smelling stomach contents when annoyed.  The name Â"DromedaryÂ" is properly reserved for the Arabian racing camel such as those used in the various military camel corps.  These camels can travel 80 to 120 miles per day carrying a rider.  Arabian baggage camels have a heavier build and are capable of carrying a very heavy load up to 40 miles per day.  There are 160 words for camel in Arabic.