Climate change: camels are about to make a comeback in Europe

In the past, dromedaries (Camelus dromedarius) and Bactrian camels (Camelus bactrianus) played an important role in agriculture, the logistics of the Roman Empire and in medieval rituals, leaving archaeological and cultural traces throughout Europe. After a decline in the Middle Ages, camels were largely confined to exotic collections.

In recent decades, however, camel breeding has experienced an upswing, primarily due to tourism and the demand for camel milk. An estimated 5,000 to 6,000 camels live in Europe today. Despite their adaptability to harsh climatic conditions and their nutritional benefits, livestock farmers face challenges such as “small population sizes, fragmented and geographically dispersed breeding efforts and the lack of a legal framework tailored to camels,” emphasizes study co-author Pamela Burger from the Research Institute of Wildlife Ecology (FIWI) at Vetmeduni. In addition, there is a lack of breeding organizations, breeding registers and genetic evaluation systems as well as a low reproductive performance and currently poor reproductive management of these species.

Better framework conditions needed ...

On the other hand, advances in the field of genomics have created new opportunities for the genetic management of camels in Europe. However, these findings also give cause for concern about the low genetic diversity of the animals native to Europe. “Coordinated international efforts, standardized phenotype recording and improved animal welfare guidelines are needed to solve these problems,” emphasizes Pamela Burger.

... to exploit the promising potential of camels

In view of climate change and increasing desertification in Europe, Burger believes that the adaptability of camels to dry environments as well as their special behavioral characteristics, milk composition and functional properties will become more apparent and will also be increasingly appreciated. Burger sees interesting potential here as a sustainable livestock: “Camel breeding in Europe is unlikely to become as important as the well-known, large livestock species in the coming decades. However, due to its special characteristics, the camel could offer interesting opportunities for diversification in animal husbandry, also from a profitability perspective.”

The article „Breeding of Camels in Europe: Between Continuity and Innovation“ by Ahana Maitra, Carlos Iglesias Pastrana, Bernard Faye, Pamela Burger and Elena Ciani was published in „Applied Sciences“ .


Scientific article



Scientific Contact:
Priv.-Doz. Dr.med.vet. Pamela Burger
Forschungsinstitut für Wildtierkunde und Ökologie (FIWI)
Veterinärmedizinische Universität Wien (Vetmeduni)
Pamela.Burger@vetmeduni.ac.at