The dromedary and the Bactrian camel are known for their ability to produce milk, in comparison to other species of Camelidae. In Africa, dromedaries are still considered as an important livestock species for milk and meat production, while unfortunately in the Arabian Peninsula more attention is directed toward camel racing than milk and meat production. For hundreds of years, camels have been used as multipurpose animals. Therefore, little selection for specific traits has taken place. They are raised for transport, milk, and meat, as well as for draft use.
Milk production from camels is mainly practiced in pastoral migratory systems. Camel raising is conducted outside the agrosystem. Most camel herds are kept in natural pastures with little or no supplemental feeding. Differences in the composition of camel milk reported from different countries may reflect differences in breeds, nutrition, and stage of lactation at sampling. Most camel milk is consumed as fresh milk. Camel milk is not as sweet as cows’ milk, which is a major constraint in marketing fresh camel milk to consumers in cities located in the arid zones, but camel milk can play an important role in providing high-quality protein to the people living in the arid and semiarid areas of the world.
Geographical Distribution
Camels are pseudoruminant mammals and they first evolved in North America. In time, the camels evolved into a number of species of the camel family Camelidae (camelids). The Camelidae belongs to the order Artiodactyla (even-toed ungulates) and the suborder Tylopoda (pad-footed animals). The Camelidae family consists of two genera: Camelus and Lama. The genus Camelus comprises two species: Camelus dromedarius (also known as the one-hump camel or Arabian camel) and Camelus bactrianus (also known as the two-hump camel or Bactrian camel). The Lama genus comprises four species: Lama glama (llama), Lama pacos (alpaca), Lama guanicoe (guanaco), and Lama vicugna (vicuna). The dromedary was first domesticated in southern Arabia at about 4000–3000 BC mainly for its milk. Camels form an important part of the domestic livestock population in most of the dry areas of the world. The camel is considered as an animal of the desert (hot or cold). It is found in areas where there is low rainfall, occurring in a relatively short period of time. The success of the camel in desert climates that other domestic farm animals cannot tolerate is due to its peculiar physiology.
Most dromedaries are found in the arid and semiarid areas of north and east Africa, the Indian subcontinent, and throughout the Arabian Peninsula. These areas are characterized by low rainfall and a long dry season with high ambient temperatures (in the range of 5–45 _C). On the other hand, Bactrian camels are mainly distributed through the deserts and semideserts of the north and northwest of China and throughout Mongolia. The temperature in areas where Bactrian camels are raised ranges from _20 to 40 _C. They are multipurpose animals, mainly used for working and producing wool. There are an estimated 18 million Camelus in the world, of which 2 million are Bactrian camels. Of the 16 million dromedaries, approximately 13 million are found in Africa, with the largest population in east Africa (Somalia and Sudan). The remainder of dromedaries are found mainly in the Arabian Peninsula and the Indian subcontinent.
(Encyclopedia of Dairy Sciences, Second Edition)