Camels have a long tradition in Europe, which goes back to the time of the ancient Rome. Even in the Middle Ages, the hump animals were still of great importance in many places. Now the breeding and keeping of camels in Europe could experience a comeback, as researchers report. Against the background of the advancing climate change, the qualities of the desert residents in Germany would be particularly in demand.
Camels have been serving humanity as an important farm animal for centuries. They deliver milk and meat, can wear heavy loads and get along well with a rough, dry climate. Due to these many advantages, the hump animals were widespread in earlier era – even in Europe, although camels are more likely to be expected today in the Middle East. Among other things, the animals played a major role in ancient Rome, where they were used in agriculture and logistics.
From the status symbol to the margin
Another hotspot of camel posture was on the Canary Islands, where Dromedare was first introduced in 1405 AD. “The dry climate and the sodium -rich vegetation of the islands in connection with the lack of natural predators favor the quick growth of camel populations,” explain Ahana Maitra from the Italian University of Bari and her colleagues. “Camels played an important role in agriculture, in grade and transportation and shaped the local landscape, for example by the construction of terrace fields. In society, camels became wealth and status symbols in society, which made it an integral part of the cultural heritage of the Canary Islands.”
But this era did not last forever. After a gradual decline in the course of the Middle Ages, camels in Europe were almost only limited to exotic collections. Today, however, there are again 5,000 to 6,000 of them – including in Germany, Spain, France and Sweden. European camel breeding has experienced an upswing in the past decades, which is primarily due to tourism and the demand for camel milk, as Maitra and its team explain. They suspect that it could be the first step of a larger comeback that is now imminent.
A comeback with hurdles
“Although camel breeding in Europe will probably not achieve the importance of the known, large farm species in the coming decades. Due to its special properties, the camel could offer interesting opportunities for diversification in animal husbandry, even from the perspective of profitability,” reports co-author Pamela Burger from the Veterinary University of Vienna. This is particularly related to the high drying tolerance of the camels, which could be increasingly in demand in view of the advancing climate change and increasing desert formation in Europe.
However, the comeback of the camels still stand in the way of some hurdles. As the team explains, for example, legal framework conditions for camel breeding are still missing. Another problem is the limited number of camels currently held in Europe. Since these also live geographically widely, there could be a genetic impoverishment in the long term. With increasing interest in camel posture in Europe, however, these circumstances could gradually improve, as the researchers suspect.
Source: Veterinary University of Vienna; Specialist articles: Applied Sciences, DOI: 10.3390/App15031644