Camels can survive in the world’s driest, hottest, and most desert environments. And they manage to eat plenty, but what do they consume in locations that appear to be devoid of life?
Camels have acquired various adaptations that allow them to live in the desert. They have specialized lips for desert foods in addition to the one or two humps they have, which are made of fat and do not serve as water tanks.
They have a split upper lip, with each side working independently, allowing the animal to graze close to the ground and consume short grass – essential in the desert, where everything grows slowly.
Camels can survive in the world’s driest, hottest, and most desert environments. And they manage to eat plenty, but what do they consume in locations that appear to be devoid of life?
Camels have acquired various adaptations that allow them to live in the desert. They have specialized lips for desert foods in addition to the one or two humps they have, which are made of fat and do not serve as water tanks.
They have a split upper lip, with each side working independently, allowing the animal to graze close to the ground and consume short grass—essential in the desert, where everything grows slowly.
Camels have three to four stomachs. The food gets partially broken down in the first two stomachs before being regurgitated as cud and munched on again. Once it’s swallowed and enters the other stomach (or two), that cud succumbs to the forces of several microbes that help with digestion.
Camels can survive for more than a week with no water and for months without food.
