This article may require cleanup to meet Wikipedia's quality standards. Please improve this article if you can. (April 2007) For other uses, see Camel (disambiguation). Camel

Dromedary, Camelus dromedarius

Bactrian camel, Camelus bactrianus Scientific classification Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Class: Mammalia Order: Artiodactyla Family: Camelidae Genus: Camelus Linnaeus, 1758 Species Camelus bactrianus Camelus dromedarius Camelus gigas (fossil) Camelus hesternus (fossil) Camelus sivalensis (fossil)

Camel headcount in 2003. Camels are even-toed ungulates within the genus Camelus. The dromedary, one-humped or Arabian camel has a single hump, and the Bactrian camel has two humps. They are native to the dry desert areas of western Asia, and central and east Asia, respectively. The average life expectancy of a camel is forty to fifty years. The term camel is also used more broadly to describe any of the six camellike creatures in the family Camelidae: the two true camels, and the four South American camelids, the llama, alpaca, guanaco, and vicu?a. A fully-grown adult camel stands 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in) at the shoulder and 2.15 m (7 ft 1 in) at the hump. The hump rises about thirty inches (75 cm) out of its body. Camels can run up to 65 km/h (40 mph) in short bursts and sustain speeds of up to 40 km/h (25 mph). Fossil evidence indicates that the ancestors of modern camels evolved in North America during the Palaeogene period, and later spread to Asia. Humans first domesticated camels before 2000 BC [1][2]. The dromedary and the Bactrian camel are both still used for milk, meat, and as beasts of burden—the dromedary in western Asia, and the Bactrian camel further to the north and east in central Asia.