Camels: Ships of the Arabian Deserts

The poster child of the Sahara desert is American in origin. Not unlike dogs and horses, camels also evolved in the prairies of America, some 20 million years ago. In those days they resembled gazelles or giraffes much more than the humped beasts of burden that is known to us today.

But then about 4 million years ago they decided to cross the Bering land bridge and travel to Asia. The last Ice Age then saw the extinction of this proto-camel in North America, and unlike dogs and horses, they never returned to the prairies.

It's rather unclear why the North American camel became extinct. Climate change is the most probable culprit. Some scientist today attribute their extinction to a change in the silica content of grass that the North American camel consumed.

With the North American climate getting colder and drier, silica content in grass became threefold. This new super-hard grass then wore away the teeth of even the longest-toothed grazers causing the camels to starve to death gradually.

It is likely that these weakened species were then finished off by human hunters after their escape route to Asia was cut off by the disappearance of the Bering land bridge 10,000 years ago.

Today, camels transport people and goods through dry deserts, under the burning sun defying swirling sandstorms. They can go on without water for days and days, which makes them well-adapted for desert conditions.

Camels can conserve humidity due to the fact that their body temperature can rise many degrees before they begin to sweat. They also produce concentrated urine and dry dung.

Camels live on tough desert plants, and survive for long periods by using the fat stores in their humps. Today, there are two types of camel: the dromedary, with one hump, and the Bactrian camel, with two humps. Both types have been domesticated, but only the Bactrian camel lives on in the wild.

The majority of camels are domesticated dromedaries. Desert nomads hold these obnoxious, smelly beasts in high esteem and dress them in magnificent finery. Most parts of the camel can be dressed in pieces embroidered and decorated with shells, beads, minors, and tassels.

This eye-pleasing regalia is usually reserved for special occasions like weddings and religious festivals. Some of the camel's finery is also used to decorate people's homes, because they are so beautiful. In most desert tribes, the weaving and embroidery are done by women, while the saddles and harnesses are made by men.