Australia is home to a substantial wild camel population. These dromedary camels, not native to the continent, were introduced centuries ago and have since thrived in the vast arid and semi-arid regions. Their presence is now a notable feature of the Australian landscape.
Wild Camels Across the Australian Landscape
Australia hosts the world’s largest population of wild dromedary camels. These animals primarily inhabit the arid and semi-arid regions of central Australia, encompassing much of Western Australia, South Australia, the Northern Territory, and parts of Queensland. Their distribution covers approximately 3.3 million square kilometers, about 37% of the mainland.
The wild camel population was estimated at around 300,000 in 2013, and has an annual growth rate of about 10%. Before management efforts, estimates in 2008 suggested the population could have reached over one million animals. Camels adapt well to Australia’s harsh conditions, capable of traveling up to 70 kilometers per day in search of food and water. They are resilient, able to survive for extended periods without water by utilizing fat reserves in their humps.
Their Arrival and Spread
The introduction of camels to Australia began in the 19th century, with the first camel, named Harry, arriving in Port Adelaide in 1840 from the Canary Islands. Between 1840 and 1907, an estimated 10,000 to 20,000 dromedary camels were imported, primarily from British India and Afghanistan, alongside skilled handlers known as “Afghan cameleers.”
These camels aided exploration, transport, and infrastructure development, playing a significant role in projects like the Overland Telegraph Line and the Goldfields Water Supply Scheme. With the rise of motorized transport in the 1920s and 1930s, camels became redundant as beasts of burden. Many were released into the wild by their owners, establishing the large feral herds found across Australia today.
Impact on Australia’s Environment and Economy
The large population of wild camels has significant environmental and economic consequences for Australia. Environmentally, they compete with native wildlife, such as kangaroos, for resources like water and forage, especially during dry periods. Their foraging behavior, which includes consuming over 80% of available plant species, and trampling can damage vegetation and suppress the growth of some plant species, including rare and threatened flora.
Camels also contribute to erosion by destabilizing dune crests and can foul waterholes, making them unsuitable for other animals and contaminating cultural sites important to Aboriginal communities. Economically, wild camels damage infrastructure, including fences, yards, and water sources like bores and tanks, particularly when seeking water. This damage can lead to livestock escaping and results in control and management costs for pastoralists.
Current Management Strategies
Managing Australia’s extensive wild camel population involves strategies aimed at reducing their numbers and mitigating their impacts. Aerial culling, where camels are shot from helicopters, is a common and effective method for large-scale population reduction in remote areas. This approach removed approximately 130,000 camels during the 2009-2013 Australian Feral Camel Management Project.
Ground culling, involving shooting from vehicles, and mustering for live export or commercial harvesting for meat are also employed. Despite these efforts, managing such a vast and widely distributed population across challenging terrain presents ongoing difficulties. Research continues to explore more effective and humane methods, including the potential for commercial utilization of camels for products like meat and milk, to manage their numbers.