Bactrian camel of the desert. Bactrian camel

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The modern world shows everyone how quickly time passes and how our civilization has changed. But, despite the fact that it is the 21st century, in some places life continues the same way as it did many thousands of years ago. It's about. In some places, life seemed to stand still. For example, camels, which were of great importance in ancient times, are still considered indispensable.

Camels are either one-humped or two-humped. The first representatives live in and in the Middle East and there they have long been considered pets. But, despite this, wild herds of these ungulates can still be found here and there. The Bactrian camel lives in North Africa, Southeast Asia and India. They have also been there for many centuries and are considered domesticated animals.

Among nomads, wealth is still calculated in camels. Of course, they have supported the existence of many states for centuries. With their help, people, various cargoes, salt were transported and, in fact, they were an indispensable animal for trade and for communication with the outside world. It is believed that if it were not for camels, many areas of Africa would still be uninhabited by people. And many desert civilizations still depend on these workers.

Camels belong to the family Camelidae, and there are a total of six species of these humpbacked saviors of Africa:

• One-humped
• Bactrian camel
• Wild camel - Thomas
• Knobloch's camel
• Camel Sivalensis

These giants can be easily recognized among other ungulates, thanks to their humpbacked silhouette and long neck, which is shaped like the letter U. The color varies depending on the species: from ash-gray to brown. It should be noted that closer to winter, the camel’s head, as well as their neck, humps and front legs are covered with hair. In the spring, this entire winter outfit sheds, and whole shreds of camel hair fall off. In the desert, which, as is known, has very little water, camels, unlike humans, feel great. They usually move slowly, but can reach speeds of up to 65 km/h.

Camels are very unpretentious animals, so they happily use the famous camel thorns, various greens and shrubs as food. Moreover, other inhabitants of Africa refuse many bushes, but camels quite like this food. In addition, if a camel is too hungry, it will not even disdain the carrion of animals, eating even bones and skin.

Surprisingly, a camel can live without water for about 10 months, receiving the moisture it needs from food. But when it is given a watering hole, this ungulate can drink 100 liters of water at a time. It is worth noting that South American camels are more finicky and feed exclusively on grass or green shrubs. And once a day they always go to water.

One also cannot remain silent about the camel’s temperament. After all, if a camel refuses to perform some task, and the owner orders it, this seemingly kind creature is capable of showing its very difficult character. It can roar, rumble, bubble from its throat and even bite. After taming, the camel makes roaring sounds for a long time, as if crying and showing its offense to everyone around. Sexual maturity in camels is reached at approximately five years. Pregnancy lasts 13 months, after which only one baby camel is born, which is already confidently standing on its feet from the first day.

Animal camel amazing and unique not only in terms of place of residence but also in some features. Camels are well adapted to survive in arid and desert areas, and can survive for several days without water. Desert dwellers keep camels instead of domestic animals because they are extremely useful and can carry heavy loads.

Description and features

Camel- a large animal living in deserts. The animal is very heavy and large, due to which it can carry heavy trunks. An adult camel can reach a weight of up to seven hundred kilograms. Camel in the desert survives thanks to a hump - one or two, in which it accumulates fat.

Protection from strong sandy desert winds are double and very long eyelashes, as well as narrow, “slamming” nostrils. They close very tightly, providing protection against sand getting into the lungs during storms.

Camel in the photo It may not seem big, but its height on average reaches two meters and above. Due to the feeding habits of the animal, the lips have become very rough - this is necessary so that the camel can pluck thorny vegetation and eat it. The camel's upper lip is divided into two parts.

The animal can land on very hot sand and lie on it for a long time. In this case, the camel rests on its calloused knees and elbows. The animal also has a cloven foot and a calloused claw.

This foot structure is ideal for an animal living in the desert - it can move not only on sand, but also on rocky terrain. The camel also has a small tail, about half a meter, at the end of which there is a large tassel.

Kinds

There are two main types of desert animals - dromedary camel(dromedary) and bactrian camel(Bactrian).

Distinctive features of Bactrian:

• two humps;
• covering most of the body with fur;
• massive body;
• short facial bones and wide eye sockets;
• curved but short neck;
• in the area of ​​the forearms, beard and head, the hair becomes stiffer, forming a kind of mane;
• short legs.

camel wool thin, but with a fleece, which allows the animal to survive in cold areas without suffering from cold and temperature changes. In Bactrians, the distance between the two humps is not filled with fat, and the sacral part of the body and shoulders are very poorly developed. Bactrians are practically not suitable for caravans.

Species features of the dromedary:

• one small hump;
• short hair;
• long legs;
• long facial bones and convex frontal part;
• mobile, thin lips, plump cheeks;
• small body;
• long and very agile neck;
• thin skin and light bones;
• Pregnancy in female dromedaries proceeds three weeks faster than in Bactrians.

In addition to the two types of animals, there are subspecies - hybrids bred in mountainous areas.

1. Nar and nar – maya (females). In appearance it strongly resembles a dromedary, but their hump is elongated. Camel offspring are larger than their parents. A special feature of the Nara is the ability to reproduce, which is not typical for hybrids, but the cubs of these camels usually do not survive; they are very sick and weak.
2. Iner. It is distinguished by a powerful body, good coat and a large, long hump. Iner females produce large amounts of milk.
3. Jarbay. This hybrid is extremely rare, which is associated with sickness and weakness of the offspring.
4. Kospak. Large hybrid, produces a large amount of milk.
5. Kurt and kurt - people. Hybrid, dromedary camels. The animal is distinguished by slightly drooping forearms and high production of low-fat milk.
6. Kama, an unusual hybrid, in the creation of which they used not only a camel, but also another animal similar in structure -. Outwardly, this camel looks more like a llama - it does not have a hump and has short, coarse hair. Kama can also carry a lot of weight.

IN camel caravan most often they take strong and strong animals, which not only easily carry large loads, but can also be on the road for a long time without falling.

Lifestyle and habitat

Camels lead a sedentary lifestyle, but move from one area to another. During such transitions, they have to overcome long distances and difficult terrain - deserts, rocky areas and foothills.

Camel speed not high, so caravans move slowly. But if they notice pursuit or surveillance, they can quickly flee for several days, until they are completely exhausted and feel that the enemy has been left behind. Most often, camels run away from the smoke of fires, tigers, etc.

Camels live in dry areas, but from time to time they move closer to water to replenish its supplies. These animals do not roam alone; a caravan or group includes at least five, and more often about twenty individuals. The main male is the leader for the entire herd.

Animals are most active during daylight hours, and at night they fall asleep or become lethargic and lazy. When a hurricane hits the desert, camels can lie down all day, and when it gets too hot, they hide in ravines and bushes, or walk against the wind to cool off.

Bactrians are somewhat cowardly, but calm and not aggressive towards people. Others, wild individuals, can be dangerous.

It is difficult to indicate exactly where camels live, since their habitat is quite extensive. It is generally accepted that these animals live mainly in arid, desert areas. However, you can meet a camel not only in the desert, but also in semi-deserts, as well as at an altitude of up to three thousand kilometers above sea level.

In recent years, the number of camels has been significantly reduced, and accordingly, their habitat has decreased. This is due to the fact that all the water sources in the desert have been occupied by humans, and wild camels - haptagai - because of this, they cannot approach the reservoir and replenish their supplies.

The Bactrian camel was introduced into Krasnaya. However, today you can still find these animals in the wild in several places:

• China - arid areas, mainly areas with salt marshes, for example, Lake Lop Nor;
• Mongolia;
• Gobi Desert - areas beyond Altai.

Throughout the planet, four small areas can be distinguished that are the habitat of the wild camel. The habitat of those animals that were domesticated by humans is much wider.

They live in desert and dry areas of Algeria, the Arabian Peninsula, Iran and other eastern countries. Camels also live in the Canary Islands, India and. The Bactrian, a domesticated Bactrian camel, lives primarily in Manchuria and parts of Asia Minor.

Nutrition

In terms of food, camels are completely unpretentious, because in the desert it is extremely rare to find the kind of food that wild animals primarily feed on. Camels are accustomed to eating plants of different shapes and colors, and can also go for several days without food at all.

Camels can eat the following types of plants:

• saxaul – branches;
• fresh and dry, burnt grass;
• barnyard;
• poplar leaves;
• sagebrush;
• camel-thorn;
• bushes.

Camels are able to digest even completely inedible food - for example, thorns. In addition, their digestive system processes incoming substances and releases nutritious fiber.

Animals begin to consume poplar leaves and reeds when cold weather sets in. In rare cases, when it gets too cold, Bactrians can eat not only plant food, but also the skins of dead animals.

Camels are also unpretentious in relation to water. For more than a week, the animal does not need to replenish its fluid reserves, provided that it eats fresh grass. But when a spring comes across the way, the camel absorbs a huge amount of liquid - up to 130 liters of water. Domestic camels look for fresh water, but wild khaptagai can even get by with the liquid they get from brackish water bodies.

The animal's diet may vary depending on where it lives. Animals domesticated by people, in addition to plant foods, began to eat some types of vegetables and fruits, as well as silage and grain.

The digestive system of camels is well developed and processes even the coarsest food. All food is swallowed whole, half digested, and then spat out, after which the camel begins chewing. Camel spits not so much saliva as particles of digested chewing gum.

It is believed that dromedaries are more picky eaters - they can only eat plant foods, while Bactrian camels eat animal skins and bones in cold periods.

Hunger is not a problem for these animals. During such periods, the survival rate of animals even increases. For an adult animal, the normal period for fasting is about 30 days. All this time, his body receives nutrients from reserves deposited in the humps.

Reproduction and lifespan

During the rutting period, which begins in the fall, camel males become too active and aggressive. They can cause serious injury to humans because they kick, bite, roar very loudly, and also rush from side to side. Camels engage in combat with their opponents, and most often one of them dies.

In caravans, in order to protect people, brightly colored bandages are put on the camel, warning about the aggressiveness of the animal, or the camel is put on a leash. Wild camels are characterized by extremely aggressive behavior towards their own relatives, but domesticated by humans.

They can attack a herd and take away several females, but this has happened before. Today people use deterrents.

After camels mate, the baby appears thirteen months later. Most often, birth rates in a herd peak in the spring - in the first and second months. Like camels, birth takes place in a standing position.

The baby that is born is very large - the average weight of a newborn animal is about 45 kilograms. 2-3 hours after birth, the baby follows his mother along with the herd.

Feeding occurs up to 1.5 years. Camels become adults only 3-5 years after birth, at which time they reach sexual maturity. Today it is necessary to increase the population of wild haptagai so that this animal does not disappear. In Mongolia and China, special protected areas have been created for this purpose and measures are being taken to breed haptagai.

Bactrians have been domesticated for a long time and their population is not under threat. These animals bring many benefits to humans; they not only carry loads, but also provide milk, skin and meat. In addition, Bactrians take part in circus performances.

The camel is a completely unpretentious animal, capable of surviving even in the harshest conditions. Not only can it go without water and food for a long time, but it is also able to survive severe sandstorms, reducing its activity to almost zero.

The Bactrian camel is the largest representative of its genus, living mainly in inaccessible landscapes. For people living in arid countries, it is very valuable and is a vehicle widely used for transportation. In addition, its meat and milk are used for food; wool also finds its use in everyday life.

Description of the species

In nature, there are two main varieties of Bactrian camels, differing from each other in living conditions:

1. Homemade. In Mongolia they are usually called Bactrians.
2. Wild. Another name for them is haptagai. A rare species listed in the Red Book due to the possibility of extinction.

Both wild and domestic, they amaze with their huge build. Males are sometimes up to 2.7 meters tall and weigh up to 1 ton. Female camels are somewhat smaller in size, their weight varies from 500 to 800 kg. The camel's tail has a tassel at the end and is about 0.5 meters long. The two humps of camels are mobile; when the animal is well-fed, they are elastic and stand upright, but in a state of hunger they tilt completely or partially to the sides, dangling as they move. The humps accumulate fat deposits, which are a necessary nutritional reserve for the animal. The ability of weight accumulation of fat deposits is limited to 150 kg. In addition, the humps protect the owner from overheating, covering his back from direct contact with the scorching rays of the sun. The distance between the humps is 40 cm, allowing you to equip a saddle for the rider between them.

The legs of Bactrian camels are long, the feet are forked into two parts, the bottom is a thick callous pad, the front leg is claw-shaped, reminiscent of a hoof. This structure of the legs allows camels to move without much difficulty on rocky or loose surfaces of the ground. It is characteristic that domestic camels have calloused areas covering their front knees and chest area, which is not typical for their wild counterparts.

The animal's neck is curved, very long, from the base it bends down and then rises up. The head is very large, located in line with the shoulders. Double eyelashes, eyes with an expressive look. The nostrils are slit-shaped, the ears are very small. The upper lip has a bifurcation, which facilitates the process of chewing rough, solid food.

The coat is colored predominantly in sandy colors, sometimes reaching a dark or reddish color. Domesticated individuals are most often brown, but there are also representatives of this genus in gray, white, and black colors. Light camels are considered the rarest.

The structure of camel fur is represented by hollow hairs surrounded by undercoat, which protects the camel from changes in positive and negative air temperatures. The length of the coat is from 5 to 7 cm, at the tops of the humps and at the bottom of the neck it is longer - up to 25 cm. In winter, the coat lengthens somewhat and can reach up to 30 cm in length. Camels' fur falls out in clumps in the spring, during their molting period. In the next three weeks, until a new coat appears, they walk bald and unkempt.

Habitat

Bactrian camels, regardless of whether they belong to wild or domestic species, are endowed with the ability to survive in sometimes harsh conditions that are unbearable for individuals of other species of the animal world. This is confirmed by their ability to live during periods of very hot, dry summers or very cold winters.

In search of sources of water, wild representatives of this species are able to travel long distances, up to 90 kilometers daily. Replenishing the body's water supply, they visit the rare rivers and temporary rainfalls. In winter, watering near rivers is replaced by obtaining the necessary water from snow covers.

Characteristics and lifestyle

Khaptagai in natural conditions live in a herd of up to 20 individuals led by a leader, but in rare cases they can live alone. They constantly move across rocky flat areas in search of food and especially water, stopping first at one rare source, then at another. Bactrian camels lead an active lifestyle during the day; when darkness falls, apathy and lethargy in movements appear; more often they sleep at night. In hurricane winds, they prefer to lie down. A saving way for them to endure the heat is for them to walk against the wind, thereby ensuring thermoregulation. They also use ravines and bushes to seek coolness.

The temperament of Khaptagai and Bactrians is different. Domesticated camels are cowardly and calm in their behavior. Wild individuals are shy, but at the same time aggressive. Possessing sharp vision by nature, they see danger from afar and flee from it. The speed of haptagai can reach up to 60 km. per hour, and their endurance is so great that their running can last 2-3 days until their strength is completely exhausted and the camel falls exhausted. The Khaptagai are afraid of domesticated camels, considering them no less their enemies than tigers or wolves.

With their large heads and enormous body dimensions, Bactrian camels are not far off; when attacked by predators, they do not defend themselves, but only roar or spit. Often, even crows are able to peck at camel wounds without encountering resistance. A camel is defenseless against enemy attacks.

The saliva that a camel spits contains, in addition to it, the contents of the stomach of an irritated animal.

The winter snow period causes inconvenience for camels; they are not able to easily move through the snow, much less look for food under the snow. Horses come to the aid of domesticated camels, running through the snow, stirring it up and allowing the camels to pick up food dug out from under the snow. Wild animals have to independently look for places where ungulates ran.

Power supplies

The main nutritional diet of Bactrian camels consists of coarse, low-nutrient food, which is not suitable for all representatives of the animal world. Giants eat thorny plants, reed shoots, and coarse grass. They feed not only on plant foods; bones and skins of fauna are suitable for their nutrition. They are also capable of fasting for a long period of time; restricting food intake does not adversely affect their health. But overeating leads to obesity of the animal, thereby disrupting the functioning of its internal organs. In general, camels are indiscriminate eaters; they feed on dry grass, various cereals and dried bread.

Representatives of this species are capable of drinking water, including salty water, in huge quantities, up to 100 liters. at one time in case of prolonged absence of water. On average, being near a river, they approach it to quench their thirst once every 3 days. Without harm to health, he is able to do without liquid for 2-3 weeks, replacing the lack of water with grass.

Reproduction, lifespan

Camels reach adulthood by the age of 3-4 years. At this age they can reproduce. The mating season for this species of animals begins in the fall. During this period of time, males are very aggressive, which is expressed by their roaring, secretions of foam on the lips, constant throwing and throwing at others. Males fight with rivals, bite and kick, continuing to strike until the opponent's death. Domesticated aggressive camels are marked with rags tied to them during the mating season and they try to keep them separately from other individuals. Wild males become bolder and are able to take domesticated females with them, and destroy the males in a competitive fight.

Pregnancy lasts 13 months, the baby appears in the spring, its weight is up to 45 kg. It is very rare for a female to give birth to more than one baby, never more than two. The baby gains the ability to walk within 2 hours of birth. It feeds on mother's milk until it is one and a half years old. Parents care for the baby until he reaches puberty. Subsequently, he becomes independent, the newly-made male leaves the family to create his own herd, while the female remains with her mother in her herd.

There are known cases of crossing one-humped and two-humped camels, as a result of which individuals appeared with one hump extending along the entire length of the animal’s back. The female was named Maya, and the male was named Birtugan.

The life expectancy of wild Bactrian camels is approximately 40 years; domesticated camels, not exhausted by all the litigation that befalls wild animals, live 5-7 years longer than their fellow tribesmen.

Video: Bactrian camel (Camelus bactrianus)

Bactrian or single-humped, camels have been the source of life for many nomadic peoples for centuries. They are strong, tolerate drought well, and are able to walk many kilometers with a load of up to 350 kg. However, some individuals may have a bad character and bad habits.

Most often, the innocent question of how many humps an African camel has causes confusion among ordinary people. Everyone knows that there are one-humped and two-humped camels, but which species lives where is a complex question. Different species of camels live on different continents and practically do not overlap in nature: two-humped camels live in Asia, and one-humped camels have chosen North Africa, the Middle East and Australia. The animals came to the Australian continent along with settlers, and since then the population has been actively growing and multiplying.

Zoologists are sure that initially all camels were two-humped. The African subspecies appeared as a result of the animals' adaptation to a hotter climate.

Confirmation of this is that the dromedary embryo has two humps. The second one stops developing over time and completely disappears by the time of birth.

Features of the structure of camels

Camels have good eyesight and very good memory. Thanks to this, they are well oriented in the area, find their way to watering places and food sources among the endless dunes and dunes. Animals can see humans at a distance of a kilometer. Animals have a well-developed sense of smell - they can smell the smell of fresh water 50 km away, just as they can smell the approach of rain.

Animals have a unique foot structure - two toes have a thick, calloused sole, which allows them to move on hot and loose sand, small sharp pebbles, and also swim. Despite the fact that many camels have not seen rivers and lakes, they are excellent swimmers. Animals move mainly at a walk, but in case of danger they can gallop and reach speeds of up to 65 km per hour.

Living in a harsh climate has resulted in several distinctive and recognizable animal characteristics:

• On the chest, in the elbow area, on the wrists and in the knee area, camels have leathery growths - calluses, which allow animals to lie on the hot ground,
• The moisture that evaporates from the nostrils when exhaling is collected in a special fold and then enters the oral cavity,
• The three-chambered stomach is capable of digesting any, even the roughest food,
• The animal’s nostrils open when inhaling and exhaling, this ensures minimal evaporation of precious liquid,
• Sweating begins only at temperatures above 41 degrees,
• Most of the water is stored in the scar tissue of the stomach,
• Camels have a unique structure of red blood cells. They have an oval shape, which protects the blood from thickening and the animal from death,
• Animals are able to lose up to 40% of fluid and not die,
• When using 100 grams of fat from its humps, a camel is able to obtain up to 110 grams of water,
• In one approach to a watering hole, a camel can drink up to one hundred liters of water.

The most important distinguishing feature of the animal is the dorsal hump, which accumulates fat deposits. The main task of the hump is thermal protection and regulation of heat exchange, and only then is a supply of food and water.

Camels are ruminants and can consume even very nutrient-poor vegetation - wormwood, various types of thorns, saxaul, barnyard grass, saltwort, various types of reeds, as well as grass, leaves and twigs of various bushes and low-growing trees. A hungry animal will not disdain bird eggs or carrion.

Feral individuals are able to go without water for up to nine months - they are fully satisfied with the moisture entering the body through food.

Characteristics of animals

Camels, especially wild and feral ones, are quite irritable and hot-tempered animals. In response to an insult, a threat, or in case of irritation, they spit. But not saliva, as many people think, but the fetid, semi-digested contents of one section of the stomach. The mass not only smells bad, but is also sticky and thick. Males also spit during the rutting season.

The Bactrian camel is more docile in character than the dromedary camel, however, for use on the farm, for riding and transporting goods, all males are castrated to avoid problems during the breeding season. To produce offspring, only a few males are left, who are practically not used for economic needs. Animals usually express their dissatisfaction with a loud roar, less often by biting, and even less often by spitting. Most often, the inhabitants of zoos who suffer more from crowds of tourists are susceptible to bad habits.

Dromedary African Camel - Arabian

The African camel is called by several names, the most common being dromedary. The dromedary camel is much smaller than its Asian counterpart. At the withers, the height rarely exceeds two meters, and the body length can reach three and a half meters in males. A healthy and well-fed individual can weigh up to seven hundred kilograms.

The answer to the question posed above - how many humps does an African camel have - will be one.

The African camel is one-humped. From the name it follows that it lives in Africa, or more precisely in the north of the continent, but dromedaries are widespread in the Middle East, especially in Saudi Arabia and the Emirates.

The one-humped camel has a beautifully elongated head and a convex forehead, a slightly hump-nosed profile, and pronounced ganache. The animal's eyes are very large and expressive, framed by two rows of long and thick eyelashes. The Arabian's neck is strong, and males often have a peculiar mane consisting of long and sparse hair.

The dromedary camel is perfectly adapted to heat, but even mild frosts can be disastrous for the animal. Dense fur is not thick, and the subcutaneous layer of fat does not protect from frost and dampness. At the moment, there is no wild species of dromedary left in nature. All animals are either domesticated or re-feralized.

Bactrian camel

What is the name of the Bactrian camel? This animal, unlike its one-humped brother, has only one name - Bactrian. The majestic and regal Bactrian lives throughout Central and Central Asia, in some areas of China and Russia. In our country, this animal can be found in the Kalmyk steppes, in the Volgograd, Astrakhan, Rostov and Chelyabinsk regions. Bactrians have perfectly adapted to sudden climatic changes - thick and long hair saves animals not only from the scorching sun, but also from severe frosts, snowstorms and rains. They are stronger and more resilient. The length of the coat in the winter months can reach 30 cm or more! Most often, animals have a brown color of various undertones, gray, smoky and black. Cream and white camels are considered valuable.

The Bactrian camel has long and strong legs, a long neck and a beautiful hump-nosed head. Well-nourished animals have dense and erect humps. During the period of abundance of food and water, the weight of males can reach a ton, and the height of the animal, including humps, reaches three meters. Bactrians have a genetically wild subspecies that survives in some areas of China and Mongolia.

A wild camel is called haptagai. The main difference between haptagai is its smaller size, the absence of calluses on the legs and chest, as well as a drier and leaner physique.

Khaptagai are in constant motion - animals travel up to 120 kilometers per day in search of food and water, and periodically enter mountainous areas. Sometimes they are found at an altitude of three thousand meters.

Nar - a hybrid of a dromedary and a bactrian

The Nar is a viable Bactrian-Dromedary hybrid that is distinguished by its large back hump, long coat, good disposition, and hardiness. The animal can only be obtained at home.

The bunks are divided into several types, depending on the crossing:

1. Iner or Nar (depending on the country of receipt) is a cross between a two-humped and one-humped camel,
2. Zharbay is the result of crossing two Nars. It is less common, since individuals are often not viable,
3. Kospak is a cross between a female Nara and a male Bactrian camel.
4. Kez-Nar is a cross between females of the cospak subspecies and males of Turkmen Bactrian camels,
5. Kurt is a cross between females of the Kazakh subspecies of iners with two-humped males of the Kazakh breed,
6. Kurt-Nar is a cross between females of the Kurt subspecies and males of the Kazakh breed of Bactrian camels.

These unusual animals are not like others. Many peoples cannot imagine life without the majestic and strong camels, domesticated many centuries ago. In some countries, the wealth of families is determined by the number of camel herds. For a very long time in the East, camel pack was the standard measure of weight. And old Arabic tales, in which the “ship of the desert” appears in one way or another, are spread all over the world.

The owners of these animals claim that camels are smart and understand humans very well, but each of them has its own character. And some are just terribly stubborn!

Many of us have known since school that there are different types of camels, similar to each other, but also different in some ways. What are their common features and what are their differences?

General characteristics of the family

Of course, the main distinguishing feature is the presence of a hump. By the way, it is by this feature that you can easily understand what species a camel belongs to. The camelid family includes several genera that are not camels, but are very closely related to them. All of these animals are mammals. The family belongs to the suborder Callopods. The peculiar structure of the legs is one of the main characteristics of the family. All camelids do not have (functional) hooves, and the underside of the foot is a calloused pad. In some genera it is paired, in others it is not.

Another characteristic feature is a long neck. But the most unusual, perhaps, is another feature of camelids, which is not visible to the naked eye. All members of the family have oval red blood cells, rather than round ones, like almost all other animals (and humans).

It is noteworthy that the vast majority of members of the family are excellent swimmers. In the natural habitat of camels, as a rule, there is a shortage of water; many of them have never seen lakes or rivers in their lives, so the mechanism of this phenomenon is not completely clear.

Prehistoric Alticamelus

These animals, of which today only fragments of skeletons remain, scattered throughout the globe, were one of the most numerous representatives of the “mammoth fauna”. The genus included similar species of camels, the names of which were given either by the names of the researchers (for example, Knobloch's camel) or by their habitat (Alexandrian camel).

In total, modern scientists identify up to ten species of extinct camels. All of them were larger than modern ones, had very long necks, and looked somewhat like giraffes (but the resemblance is exclusively convergent). Alticamelus were common in the Cenozoic.

Bactrian with two humps

Camel species differ not only in the number of humps, but also in body size. The presence of two humps is the main feature by which you can easily determine that this is a Bactrian, but the height and weight of the animal are also important. larger and heavier than its one-humped relative and all other members of the family included in other genera.

This species tolerates heat well, but it is not afraid of moderate frosts. But high humidity is destructive for Bactrian. It is found in Central and Central Asia, in Mongolia and the neighboring regions of China and Russia. People have bred many breeds of Bactrian, which are widely used in the economy as draft power or Camel meat and milk are very valuable, due to which they occupy an important place in the national cuisines of many peoples. The thick fur of the Bactrian is of considerable interest. A large number of camels of this species are kept in circuses and zoos.

Khaptagai

Most sources name only such types of camels as one-humped and two-humped. But some scientists are inclined to classify haptagai as a separate species. The version is supported by the results of genetic studies and obvious external differences. Moreover, even the belief that Bactrian descended from the wild haptagai is questioned. Outwardly they are similar. But the wild camel is smaller than representatives of domestic meat breeds.

The subspecies was first described by the famous researcher Przhevalsky. At the time of the scientist, the population of wild Bactrian camels was much larger than it is now. Currently, there are only a few hundred haptagai.

All kinds of studies of these animals make it possible to better study them and determine measures that will help maintain the number of livestock. In addition, scientists are trying to establish between Bactrians. Perhaps these are still different types of camels, but at present official science does not recognize this.

Dromedar - ship of the desert

The one-humped camel is common in the Middle East and North Africa, in Asia Minor. He is also unusually hardy, unpretentious, and strong. Man domesticated the wild dromedary camel several thousand years ago, and since then the dromedary has been an integral part of the world order of several nations. Like its two-humped brother, it is of great value on the farm.

Dromedaries are not found in nature. The ancestors of this animal, which did not lend themselves to domestication, became extinct at the dawn of our era. There is information about wild dromedaries, but these are not autochthons, but wild animals that once lived with humans. And such cases are rare. There is no talk of identifying dromedaries that are lost or have run away from home as a separate species.

By comparing the types of camels, photos of which are presented in this article, you can easily identify a dromedary by the presence of a luxurious hump.

Other members of the family

Camels, llamas and vicuñas are the three genera that make up the camelid family. The types of genera are few. The genus of llamas, for example, has only two: the llamas themselves (domestic) and the wild form of the guanaco. The genus vicuña includes one species - vicuñas, very similar to guanacos, but even smaller in size.

Some researchers call the llama and vicuña genera New World camels. They are much smaller than dromedaries and bactrians and do not even have a hint of a hump.

Who is this Nar?

This unusual word unites a huge variety of hybrids of dromedary and bactrian. The resulting individuals from parents of different species, like many other hybrids, are distinguished by excellent health, physical strength and endurance even greater than those of the parents. Nars are capable of producing viable offspring, but the third generation usually produces weak individuals that are of no value to breeders. Nars are crossed with both Bactrians and Dromedars, obtaining good results. Often a hybrid camel calf is born large, grows quickly, and in adulthood is even larger in size than its camel parent.

What types of hybrid camels breeders obtain depends on the purpose. With the help of crossbreeding, they usually try to highlight some characteristic: length and quality of wool, specific amount of meat, endurance. There are a huge number of camel breeding schemes. Kospak, zhabray, iner, kuz, kez-nar - this is not a complete list. However, hybrid individuals are not distinguished into separate species or even breeds.

In the wild, this phenomenon does not occur for the reason that the two-humped and one-humped camels have different habitats. It is noteworthy that the bunks always have one hump, but it is formed from two fused ones.