Timbavati Wildlife Park Talking Camels

Greetings and salutations dear friends and welcome to this weeks blog! Seems as if we’re right in the middle of winter and springs annual tug of war as we set the clocks forward last weekend and prepare for the big thaw. One creature who is at home in almost any climate is the camel. We often think of the camel as a hot desert animal. The desert gets very cold at night also. Camels are built Ford tough LOL.

There are two kinds of camels. Dromedary (Arabian) camels have one hump. Bactrian (Asian) Camels have two. The largest myth about camels is that their humps are filled with water, which they aren’t. The hump is a fat reserve that a camel can metabolize for survival in times when food and water are scarce.

Camels have two rows of eyelashes to keep the sand out of their eyes. Im sure these lashes would be solid in a blizzard also. Camels live all over the planet so they see a wide array of climates. There are still a lot of remote villages and communities all over the globe. These places don’t all have roads, sometimes the only way for these people to move supplies is by camel. Camels also possess the ability to close their nostrils to protect their airways from sand as well.

A thirsty camel can drink up to 135 liters of water in 1 sitting and rehydrate faster than any other animal. They drink to replace the water they’ve lost. Camels roam the deserts in herds of up to 30 members. Camels can also run at speeds of up to 25 miles an hour for extended periods.

A camel has a gestation period of 12 to 14 months and usually only give birth to one baby but can have twins. A newborn calf is able to walk within the first 30 minutes of birth. The mother will keep the baby from the herd for the first couple of weeks in the calf’s life and a camel is considered fully mature at the age of 7 years.

Check this week’s video out to see some of the camel life in Timbavati Wildlife Park. We have Camel Rides from Memorial Day to Labor day during the summer. We have two Encounter Tours that run daily at 11am and 1pm. Enter through the Gift Shop. That’s all for this week, talk with you all next week!