Camels are magnificent beasts. Here's a passage from a book I came across (Blue Guide Tunisia):
Camels have flat feet that expand with pressure and help to keep the animal "afloat" in the sand, and blood vessels which are adapted to keep the head temperature low, even though the rest of the body may be very hot. Camels carry fat reserves which can keep the animal fed for up to six months, as long as it does not have to work; their bodies can tolerate saline water and are able to form water directly from the air by combining free hydrogen and oxygen. They can live for two weeks without water, but when they do find it they can consume as much as 150 liters at a time.
Good stuff, and the book doesn't even touch on how camels store water in their humps!
Reputed to be ill-tempered brutes with malice in their hearts and a penchant for spitting, the camels I have met thus far in north Africa have had exquisite manners and hearts of gold. Except for the one, who repeatedly used his back leg to kick at my foot as it hung innocently alongside him while I sat on his back.
(No, it wasn't this guy. He was a perfect gentleman.)
Something I didn't know about camels: Their fur is soft and cuddly. Something else I didn't know: Riding them, even with a decent saddle, is painful.
2 comments:
I love camels, even though one threw me off while I was living out the Lawrence of Arabia scenes at the Giza pyramids. - Andrea
You know the story of the French Legionnaire and his camel?
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