How do Bactrian camels survive under such extreme conditions?
However, the appeal of the wild Bactrian camel to conservationists goes beyond genetics and curiosity value. We have a mammal which survives under conditions where man cannot, which is why the Chinese have opted for the desolate area as an atmospheric nuclear test site. The Gashun Gobi has no fresh water, only the saline variety which bubbles up to the surface from underground springs and on which the Bactrian survives. No other living creature, not even the domestic camel, can drink it. How has this amazing animal survived on salt water? How has it survived over 40 atmospheric nuclear tests? This is a fertile field for urgent scientific study. Wild Camel Protection Foundation Meanwhile in Mongolia, the Wild Camel Protection Foundation has established a captive wild Bactrian camel breeding programme north of the Mongolian specially protected area where 350 wild camels survive in the wild. Click here to go to their website. This programme has started successfully and in its first full y
