Too Many Camels?

When summer temperatures begin to soar in central Australia, residents brace for the rampages. Cattle ranchers race to secure the fences around their properties. Tourists flee campgrounds. Families take cover in their homes.

They know that stampedes can happen without warning: Herds of wild camels barrel through communities, ripping up pipes and water tanks, smashing through fences, and even wrenching air conditioner units from homes.

The animals are on a mission to quench their thirst. But that can be difficult in the outback, a vast desert region with rugged landscapes and harsh climates. And in recent years, finding water there has become more challenging. Parts of Australia—like much of the world—are experiencing increased heat waves and droughts made worse by climate change.

At the same time, the camel population is growing. Today as many as 1 million wild camels roam Australia’s deserts.

With natural water sources in the outback drying up, the animals are being pushed into closer and more frequent contact with humans—with costly results. Camels trample ecosystems and destroy millions of dollars’ worth of property.

“They’re roaming the streets looking for water . . . knocking down fences, getting in around the houses,” resident Marita Baker told reporters after a particularly damaging stampede in 2019. She lives in the APY Lands, an area in the outback that is home to a number of Aboriginal groups, Australia’s first human inhabitants. “We are worried about [our] safety.”

When summer temperatures begin to soar in central Australia, residents brace for the rampages. Cattle ranchers race to secure the fences around their properties. Tourists flee campgrounds. Families take cover in their homes.

They know that stampedes can happen without warning: Herds of wild camels barrel through communities. They rip up pipes and water tanks. They smash through fences. They even wrench air conditioner units from homes.

The animals are on a mission to quench their thirst. But that can be difficult in the outback. It is a vast desert region with rugged landscapes and harsh climates. And in recent years, finding water there has become more challenging. Parts of Australia are experiencing increased heat waves and droughts made worse by climate change. Much of the world is experiencing this.

At the same time, the camel population is growing. Today as many as 1 million wild camels roam Australia’s deserts.

Natural water sources in the outback are drying up. So the animals are being pushed into closer and more frequent contact with humans. And there are costly results. Camels trample ecosystems and destroy millions of dollars’ worth of property.

“They’re roaming the streets looking for water . . . knocking down fences, getting in around the houses,” resident Marita Baker told reporters after a very damaging stampede in 2019. She lives in the APY Lands. That is an area in the outback that is home to a number of Aboriginal groups. Those were Australia’s first human inhabitants. “We are worried about [our] safety.”

Still, residents are determined to bring the feral camel population under control. Some Australians, including many cattle ranchers, say culling is the most effective solution. Culling is when hunters selectively shoot animals to reduce their numbers. Thousands of camels have been killed this way in Australia. After the 2019 incident in the APY Lands, more than 5,000 camels were culled in a government-sponsored operation.

But other people say there are better ways to handle wild camels. For starters, the animals can be used for tourism. Several companies offer camel rides in the outback. There are also camel-racing tournaments. In the town of Boulia, such races draw thousands of spectators.

There is also a growing market for camel meat and milk, with a number of camel dairy farms opening throughout Australia. Paul Martin started his dairy farm, Summer Land Camels, in 2015. In addition to milk, the farm in Harrisville produces cheese and even skin care products made from the milk of about 550 camels that live on-site.

Martin says he started his business because he couldn’t bear to hear of camels being culled. If camels are killed off in Australia, “we’re never going to get them back again,” he told reporters. “We’re trying to save these animals by turning [them] into something that people will farm and enjoy.” 

Still, residents are determined to bring the feral camel population under control. Some Australians, including many cattle ranchers, say culling is the most effective solution. Culling is when hunters shoot some animals to reduce their numbers. Thousands of camels have been killed this way in Australia. After the 2019 incident in the APY Lands, more than 5,000 camels were culled in a government-sponsored operation.

But other people say there are better ways to handle wild camels. For starters, the animals can be used for tourism. Several companies offer camel rides in the outback. There are also camel-racing tournaments. In the town of Boulia, such races draw thousands of spectators.

There is also a growing market for camel meat and milk. A number of camel dairy farms are opening throughout Australia. Paul Martin started his dairy farm in 2015. It is called Summer Land Camels. In addition to milk, the farm in Harrisville produces cheese and even skin care products made from the milk of about 550 camels that live on-site.

Martin says he started his business because he could not bear to hear of camels being culled. If camels are killed off in Australia, “we’re never going to get them back again,” he told reporters. “We’re trying to save these animals by turning [them] into something that people will farm and enjoy.”