The Cantankerous Camel

I can go without water

for a starter,

to survive the harshest heat;

 from my happy humps

and crazy cells,

to one amazing nose.

When no oasis is avail

my mother’s milk will prevail.

I run like the wind,

atop spindly limbs and bulky hooves,

to create my brand and groove.

I’m not pretty; unsightly really,

I’ve a loud irritating bay for a voice,

 big yellow teeth when I smile,

and spit cause I can.

I’ve a stubborn streak,

and smell real bad.

But guess what?  I’m also loved,

 totally needed,

and royally treated.

                                                  ♥-p.o.martig

Camels (genus Camelus) are hard-working animals of the heat, or desert regions of the world.  Like the horses, llamas, bovines and other domesticated “livestock”, camels are used to transport humans and goods; their meat and milk, a delicacy and their shaggy hair often made into fiber and felt.  Camels can live up to 40 years and are a precious commodity to the countries in which they serve.  The Saudis coddle their prized Camelus enough to back extravagant beauty contests where up to 20,000 contenders from around the world compete.  These Queens of the Sand help boost patriotic pride and revenue throughout the region.

There are three different species of camel:  the Dromedary (also known as the Arabian camel) or 1-humped, comprises 84% of the world’s camel population; the Bactrian or 2-humped camel comprises about 13% of the population and the Wild Bactrian , around 1% of the population.  The Wild Bactrian, considered to be the one “true camel”, is critically endangered and found only in northern China and Mongolia.

Survival of the Fittest

Have you ever wondered how this gangly creature called the camel, can survive the deserts’ sweltering temperatures and vicious sand storms with little or no water while packing up to 900 lbs on its back?  The secret lies within its uniquely adaptive and amazing body:

•  Those Humps:  The camels humps are not for storage of water but rather as fatty tissue reservoirs.  This concentration of fat is able to minimize the total body insulation thus enabling it to centralize it where needed.  When the camels fat is metabolized it produces more than one gram of water for every gram of fat.   In turn the fats metabolization releases energy causing water to evaporate from the lungs during respiration.
•  That Amazing Nose and Lungs:  The camel’s nose is incredible, its lungs reinvented.  The human nose contains only 2 square inches of its interior surface where a camel has 155 square inches of interweaving mucous membranes on its nasal interior.  What this means is that the camel’s nose can act as a humidifier as well as a dehumidifier for the sole purpose of keeping him cool.  Instead of exhaling at body temperature, the camel can exhale temperatures averaging 18 degrees lower than his body temperature.  Instead of breathing in the harsh desert air, the camel’s nose picks up moisture from the membranes while cooling it down at the same time, due to a special water absorbing substance that extracts the moisture from the air, then passes it to the lungs where it remains at body temperature.  This amazing transgression from the “animal norm” of breathing can net a savings of nearly 70% in water lost through respiration.  *The camels nostrils can also close during desert storms creating an effective barrier against sand.
• Those Unusual Blood Cells:  Instead of being round as in most species, these oxygen bearing blood cells are oval.  This change in shape enables the cells to circulate even in dehydrated thick blood by orienting its shape to cross over the smallest of blood cells.  These marvelous cells can expand up to 240% of their original volume without rupturing while most animals  blood cells can expand only 150% of their original volume.
• Those Long Legs and Protected Sternum:  The camel’s long spindly legs come in handy to keep its body high off the sweltering desert floor that can reach upwards to 158 degrees! The Dromedary has a thick pad of tissue covering his sternum called a pedestal.  When the camel lies in a sternal position, this pedestal raises the body from the hot surface.
• Those Pretty Eyelashes, Eyelids and Long Ear Hair:  Camels have long eyelashes, 3 eyelids and long ear hairs to help deter sand from entering the body.  In fact, the “third eyelid” works like a windshield wiper to dislodge any sand that does manage to penetrate the eyelid barrier.
• That Hairy Coat:  The camel’s thick coat insulates it from intense heat and changes to a light color in summer to help reflect the sun and avoid sunburn.
• Those Wide-toed Hooves The camel’s gait and hooves help it navigate the soft and sometimes deep desert sand.  It can run up to 40 mph in a dash and up to 20 mph for the long haul.  Camel racing in Arabia is on par or even greater than the Kentucky Derby here in the United States for its popularity and unbelievable monetary bounty and pride.
• Those Kidneys and Intestines:  The camels kidneys and intestines are uniquely adapted for water retention and reabsorption.  Its urine is the consistency of syrup and feces as small as pebbles.  Because of its kidney and intestine water management in combination with its blood cell expansion, a camel can drink up to 30 gallons of water within 20 minutes and live to see another day.

Conclusion

Not a drop of water is wasted coming in or going out of this marvelous creature.

The camel’s presence originated some 45 million years ago in North America and through its evolution over the millenniums to the desert, paved the way for man’s survival on one of the cruelest and harshest terrains in the world.

References

1.https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Camel

2.https://www.ministrymagazine.org/archive/1982/08/the-camels-amazing-nose

3.https://asknature.org/strategy/blood-cells-protect-from-dehydration/#.WxNe0u4vyUk

4.http://www.todayifoundout.com/index.php/2012/06/camels-have-three-eyelids/

5.https://www.omicsonline.org/…/adaptation-mechanisms-of-camels-camelus-dromedari..

6.https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2018/01/27/what-camel-beauty-contest-can-tell-us-future-saudi-arabia/1071936001/

7.  Google images: camels and map of camel world locations

8.  Youtube video: Vice: Miss Camel Beauty Contest

9.  Youtube video:  One Million Dollar Camel Race/Wild Arabia BBC