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The Camel
In the first of an occasional series on Arabian wildlife, Zac Sharpe takes a look at the history and importance of the camel to the region
And this is probably just as well for the bedouins who have traditionally shared the deserts of the Arabian Peninsula, including the UAE, with the camel. In the past the bedu were reliant on the camel for most of their life-sustaining needs.
Dubbed the ship of the desert, the camel was always valued as more than a mode of transport. For centuries it was also a source of meat, milk, clothing and shelter.
But as the Emirates have modernised and the economy has evolved to become more reliant on oil than subsistence agriculture and pearls, so too has the role of the camel in modern society.
Cars have replaced animals as a means of transport. Today the camel is more speed boat than ship. The Bedouins can still earn a worthy bounty from a healthy beast but it is more likely to be collected on the race track than in the dunes.
Originally the sport of camel racing was a source of entertainment at bedu weddings and festivals. Today it is a multi-million dollar industry with regular race meets, thoroughbred breeding programmes, random drug testing and lucrative stake money.
The UAE rulers have invested heavily in the sport and taken it upon themselves to protect and nurture an animal to which their ancestors owed so much.
In the UAE today there are specialised hospitals catering solely for the camel and research bodies responsible for charting the animal's progress through genetic and medical examination.
Scientists believe the ancient beginnings of the camel to originate in North America. Its earliest ancestors lived 50 million years ago but at that stage the animal was no larger than a rabbit. It crossed the ancient land bridge which is now the Bering Straits into Asia and the Middle East and Africa.
The camel was probably first domesticated about 2,000 years ago on the southern Arabian peninsula by Yemeni tribesmen in need of milk and meat. The theory stems from classical literature relating to this period.
In Egypt, the oldest evidence of the camel relates to a cord made of camel hair found in a tomb dating back to between 3,300 and 4,000 years ago.
Unlike the motor vehicle which has in many ways usurped the camel, the unique design features of the camel have remained unchanged for millennia.
The most misunderstood feature of the camel is undoubtedly the hump. Long thought of as a water reservoir which allows it to roam the desert for up to a month without drinking, the trademark physical trait is actually a storage unit for fat which can be drawn upon for energy.
The invasion by Alexander the Great about 2,300 years ago took the camel into India and in North Africa the earliest documented evidence of the camel dates back to 46 BC. Caesar recorded the capture of 22 of the beasts from the Nubian army.
By the 4th century AD the camel had become established as an economic mainstay of the region, prized as a beast of burden.
Today there are still small pockets of bedouin living the traditional lifestyle, such as around the mountains of Ras Al Khaimah where the camel fulfils it ancient role. In Oman, some tribesmen still calculate bride dowries in camels.
But twentieth century industrialisation has rendered the camel almost obsolete as a work animal, although camels are still a valuable commodity in developing countries such as Sudan and Somalia. Even in modern economies such as Australia, camels are farmed and used as a recreational attraction.
Of the estimated 14 million camels worldwide, about 50,000 are in the UAE. Sudan, a major exporter of camels is home to 3.5 million and wandering around Saudi Arabia, with the largest population in the Middle East, are another 1.5 million.
As with horses, the lucky or astute owner of a quality thoroughbred camel stands to collect enough money to fund an early retirement. With racing camels held in the same regard by the Arab aficionados of the sport as their equine opposites, race winners can be sold for anywhere between one and ten million dirhams.
A racing camel begins its competitive life at about two years of age. While they can live as long as 40 or more years, their racing life usually expires after about ten years on the track.
Unlike horses, the majority - in fact 90 per cent - of champion camels are female. The fabled stamina of the camel is evident in the fact reaces are conducted over distances ranging from two to ten kilometres.
Controversy has in the past clouded the sport, with accusations of exploitation of children used as jockeys. While the early days of the sport were less stringently administered, modern regulations insist jockeys must tip the scales at a minimum weight of 45 kilograms.
The fuel which can power a lean and strong camel at average racing speeds of about 35 kph generally comprises barley, oats, wheat, corn and soya in scientifically prepared portions. And anti-doping measures are in place to weed out offenders who resort to less orthodox feed.
A racing expert who worked with the royal family's prized stock of thoroughbreds said the approach between royal and bedouin racing trainers varied greatly.
"Nowadays the top racers are bred, fed and trained according to finely tuned scientific methods whereas the bedu rely more on intuition and memory," he said.
"The main thing is to keep the feed mix high energy, high fibre and low protein," he added.
A dairy with 300 cows set aside exclusively for the supply of milk to top flight camels contributes to this strict dietary regimen.
Such is the exalted place of the camel in UAE culture that conferences, symposiums and seminars are regularly dedicated to improving the well-being and understanding of the desert dweller.
Even a specialised museum in honour of the camel was recently proposed by two veterinary experts from Sarajevo.
The idea, put forward by Dr Ibrahim Arnautovic and Dr Abdullah Dzuvic, would allow for medical and scientific research, a library on camel literature and conference rooms, in addition to the display halls.
"The idea, which would cost about $4 million dollars to build and cover 2,000 square metres, has attracted a lot of interest," said Dr Arnautovic.
"People will better understand how this cultural icon is so specifically designed to adapt to its extreme living conditions," he said.
Already the camel is pampered with its own hospital. Six years ago Dr Jahangir Akbar was given the exacting task of establishing a medical facility to cater for the animal which had undergone the transition from farm animal to racing thoroughbred.
Evolving from a centre "without even a syringe" to a modern hospital catering for 4,000 breeding camels and 2,000 racing camels, Akbar said the staff were involving themselves more with research into common ailments.
"The camels usually come to us with joint problems or fractures, including that most human condition, arthritis," he said.
Despite their reputation as a spitting and temperamental creature, most were well-behaved in the surgery.
"The animals we confront have usually grown accustomed to human contact. Occasionally they'll act up a little but usually they are the model patient," said Akbar.
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The camel is one of the marvels of nature - a huge, hairy beast thriving in the most barren and inhospitable terrain on earth.