- Fact 2 - There are two types of
camels: the one-humped camel (the Arabian Camel or
Dromedary Camel,
native to to Africa and the Middle East) and the two-humped
Bactrian camel which is native to the Gobi Desert in Mongolia
- Fact 3 - Bactrian camels are much
more common than one hump Dromedary camels
- Fact 4 - Bactrian camels are native
to the Gobi Desert in Mongolia
- Fact 5 - Bactrian camels are much
more mild-mannered than the grumpy dromedary
- Fact 6 - The Bactrian camel loses
its coat in the spring and grows a thick coat of hair each
winter whereas the Dromedary Camel has a uniform length of hair
year round
- Fact 7 - The Bactrian camel can go
without food and water for 3 to 4 days
- Fact 8 - Bactrian Camel stats and
facts
- Weight: 1,000 – 1,500lbs
- Height: Over 11 feet
- The humps: Rise about 30 inches
(76.20 cm) out of its body
- Habitat:
Desert and the grasslands (steppes) of Asia
- Lifespan: 40 years
- Speed: Up to 20 mph
- Diet: Camels are herbivores eating mainly
dried leaves, seeds and desert plants
- Bactrian Camels can drink about 200
litres of water in a day
- Fact 9 - The hoofs of camels are
small, and situated at the extremities of the toes, and the
weight of the animal rests on the callous
- Fact 10 - Camels are ruminants,
meaning that they have a digestive system that allows use of
otherwise indigestible foods by regurgitating and re-chewing
them as "cud"
- Fact 11 - The cud is then
re-swallowed and further digested by specialised microorganisms
- Fact 12 - Bactrian camels have
bushy eyebrows and two rows of long eyelashes, which protect
their eyes
- Fact 13 - Baby camels are born
without humps
- Fact 14 - Bactrian Camels can close
their nostrils to prevent sand from entering inside their nose
- Fact 15 - Camels have the ability
to endure wide changes in their body temperature as well as
water content
- Fact 16 - The thick coats of
Bactrian camels reflect sunlight and serve as insulation from
the heat of the sand
- Fact 17 -
Endangered Species:
The small wild population of Bactrian camels (as opposed to the
domesticated variety) are listed by the International Union for
Conservation of Nature (IUCN) as 'critically endangered' due to
capture and habitat loss
- Critically Endangered - CR (Status: Threatened) - Face an extremely high risk of extinction in the
immediate future
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