Camels how to survive in the barren desert?

According to the Natural History Museum of London (NHM), all three species of camels, including the subfamilies Camelus dromedarius, Camelus bactrianus and Camelus ferus, have evolved constantly to be able to survive in the arid desert.

In particular, the main feature with the structure of 1 to 2 humps that they carry on their backs is considered a vital element of camels compared to other animals.

A two-humped camel Camelus bactrianus at the Shanghai Zoo.

What is a camel's hump used for?

Many people think that a camel's hump is a reservoir of water to help it traverse hundreds of kilometers of hot desert. However, that is not the case.

The camel's hump does not contain water, but rather the fat the animal accumulates when eating grass. Specifically, up to 80% of the mass of the tumor is fat in its concentrated form.

Thanks to this composition, the hump acts as a storage place for energy, with temperatures that can reach over 80 degrees Celsius. Therefore, even under the scorching heat of the sun, the hump will not melt. . In contrast, when a camel burns off that stored energy, its skin shrinks and the hump collapses.

Camels can live for more than a week without water and months without food.

Special mechanism of metabolism and water storage

To adapt to the harsh living environment, most camels have light skin colors to absorb less heat. Its nostrils can also be completely closed to avoid maximum dehydration.

By scientific studies, it has been found that the metabolism of camel humps slows down when the heat of the environment increases. In addition, the camel's oval red blood cells have the ability to double or even triple in volume and volume when it drinks hundreds of liters of water in a few minutes.

For comparison, if a normal person drank almost 10% of their body weight in water, they would immediately die from rupture of red blood cells.

Although the animal can store water in up to three stomachs, it rarely urinates and sweats less to limit dehydration.

In addition, the camel's keen senses also allow it to sniff to know where there is water even if it is tens of kilometers away, or up to 7 meters deep under the ground.

Camel's "specialized" lips

Camels have a split upper lip.

Camels have a split upper lip, with each half moving separately. The reason for this special structure is to allow the animal to graze near the ground to eat short grasses that grow in the desert.

Camel food is also quite diverse. They can eat thorns, hay, and branches from any desert plant.

Even in an environment so harsh that the necessary supplies cannot be found, camels can still survive. As reported by the Oakland Zoo, dromedary camels can live for more than a week without water and months without food.