10 Questions: Ships of the Desert Multiple Choice Quiz | Animals

Answer: Fresh camel dung

Amazingly this was found to be the case when Germany was occupying northern Africa during World War II. Comically so, to the horror of the rather fussy Germans, they noticed that whenever an outbreak of dysentery occurred, the locals would follow a camel around until it dropped a load of its poop onto the ground.

They then consumed same. This product had to be fresh, however, as the cure wouldn't work with products that were stale. Oh yummy. Investigations revealed that certain bacteria in freshly produced camel dung destroyed the dysentery bacteria.

As you can imagine, the Germans very quickly found a way to isolate this healing bacteria so that it was far more appealing to the palate. There's chips - and then there's chips.

Answer: They carry mobile libraries throughout the area

The northeastern parts of Kenya have an extremely high rate of illiteracy and lack of schools. This lack of reading ability stands at 85 per cent, compared to 31 per cent for the rest of the country. The major contributing factor is lack of reading materials to improve same, and thus the poverty cycle is being perpetuated in that part of the world. Accordingly, in 1996, a mobile camel library service was set up by Kenya's National Library to try this overcome this problem. Four days a week, every week, librarians set out from the more affluent parts of the country, with three camels each, to take books out to these far flung areas of their country.

One camel carries four hundred books, another carries a portable library tent structure, and the third carries everything else needed for the trip. Because the people in these areas lead a nomadic lifestyle, the destination for the librarians changes each visit to the twelve regions the service covers. At each stop, the tent and the books are unpacked, and the books spread out in an orderly fashion on large mats. The children are allowed to select two books each on every visit and are allowed to keep and study these until the next visit, usually fortnightly, rolls around. This wonderful mobile camel library service may well be the sole means of changing the lives of the people in this poverty-stricken area of the world for the better.

Answer: They drink salt water

Apparently the Bactrian camel of Eastern Asia is the only naturally wild camel left in the world. All other camels have been domesticated, or in the case of Australia, are domesticated camels that have become feral. So tough is the wild Bactrian at surviving that it continues to exist in the harshest climates and environments on the planet.

These include wastelands where the Chinese carried out nuclear tests some years ago, the Gobi desert of Mongolia, and in areas where fresh water barely exists at all.

Instead, these hardy creatures slake their thirst by drinking water from salt springs. Amazing.

Answer: The hump

The hump of the camel is packed full of fat, so when cooked, this is lovely and tender. So tasty is this dish that it is now sold in other areas of the world apart from the Middle East. Britain, for example, is noted for its camel burgers, and apparently this meat is also consumed with great relish all over Australia. What a fine piece of exaggeration. It may indeed be sold in some restaurants and butcheries, but the article from which this information was obtained makes it sound as though Australians are lining up everywhere to chomp into camel. Not true. They say the same thing about kangaroo, emu and crocodile meat as well - also relatively rare still as meals in this country. Camel meat, however, is said to be quite healthy when compared to your ordinary piece of beef, so perhaps it will be part of everyday fare here eventually. Camels of course may have a differing opinion.

The recipe for cooking camel by the Bedouins of the Middle East sounds like a real feast. That method involves stuffing cooked eggs into fish, which is then stuffed into chicken, which in turn is stuffed into a sheep, before finally stuffing that into the camel. You could say that the poor old camel, in fact, is well and truly stuffed.

Answer: Yes

Absolutely so. Camel milk has been used for centuries in Kazakhstan, for example, as a treatment for tuberculosis, and in Africa it is used to treat people suffering from HIV/AIDS. Most amazingly though, in other areas of the world, regular consumption of camel milk has been shown to keep the need for regular insulin injections, for those with diabetes, at a very low level.

This is particularly the case in third world countries where those residents simply do not have the means to otherwise purchase life saving insulin. If camel milk can really do this, then what a remarkable gift it is indeed. Unfortunately however, in most affluent countries, this product was considered illegal for years and permission for its sale was refused.

It was actually a felony to sell same in the USA, and it wasn't until 2009, that the FDA granted its approval to do so - but only if the milk was purchased directly from a camel farmer.

Answer: Lack of female camels

Remarkably, this is the case. The USA by 2014 only had 5,000 imported camels. The female camel in particular is in very low numbers. Although camel milking programs are now in existence in Michigan, Missouri, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Indiana, North Carolina and Ohio, each camel farm has only a maximum of twenty camels.

The female breed in the States produces only five litres of milk a day. This has to be shared with its calf until it is eighteen months old. Otherwise the mother stops producing milk. Females camels also cannot be bred until they're at least four years old. So easily available in poorer countries, milk from camels in the United States, on the other hand, is fifty times dearer to purchase than an ordinary cow's milk. On a positive note, several more states in the US are soon to also open up camel dairies.

Then the price for camel milk may reduce.

Answer: Ten

No wonder it's considered so valuable a product. Following are a few facts about the nutritional value of camel's milk. A person can survive on camel milk alone for lengthy periods if necessary. It is packed full of protein and antimicrobial properties, is lower in lactose than cow's milk, but much higher in potassium, magnesium, copper, sodium and zinc.

It is lower in cholesterol, and Vitamin A and B2, but higher in iron, Vitamin C, and unsaturated fatty acids. In addition to all these facts, camels can survive quite comfortably in dry climates and can exist on much less water than cows.

The poor things can even survive in desert like climates, so are ideal for breeding in those drier areas of the world. If the demand for their products grows, and farms spring up everywhere, it is believed by the scientists at UNESCO, that these semi-miraculous beasts may even contribute to the de-desertification of our beautiful planet.

Answer: Racing camels

The symptoms of this syndrome, which first appeared in 2012, include difficulty in breathing, fever and racking coughs. More severe symptoms include pneumonia and kidney failure. While not normally considered life-threatening, its progression to the dangerous stage resulted in the deaths of more than sixty people by 2013. Scientists are deeply concerned by this figure, because of the difficulty of manufacturing a cure for same.

They are hoping to develop a blood serum from healthy camels to treat MERS, but until then are working round the clock to adapt the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) treatments to at least lessen its effects.

Initially unsure as to how this virus was spread, further research revealed that retired racing camels were the culprits.

Infected by bats of all things, the camels were passing the virus on to their trainers. From them, it then spread from person to person.

Answer: Camel wrestling

The one big difference between camel fights and the barbaric practice of bullfighting or dog and cock fights, is that the camels aren't killed. They can be injured however. The Turkish government made half-hearted attempts at the beginning of the 20th century to ban this sport, but because it's been such a part of the country's culture for over 2,4000 years, they had little success. Follow up governments openly encouraged it for its cultural value.

The day before a match, all the camels due to fight each another, accompanied by music and cheering onlookers, are paraded through the streets of the town in which the match is being held. On the match day itself, the amphitheatre is packed with big time gamblers and excited crowds munching on camel meat hot dogs. Because male camels usually won't attack each other unless a female camel is on heat nearby, a female camel in this condition leads each of the two contestants at a time into the ring. This agitates the males of course. Sometimes the camels are deliberately starved beforehand to make them even more aggressive. On a given signal, the trainers then push their camels into each other to anger them - and the fighting begins.

The two contestants try to trip each other or get their opponent into a headlock, or sit on one another's head. How undignified. Biting is strictly against the rules though, you'll be pleased to know, and this is stringently monitored. The winner of each match is determined when the weaker camel either screams in pain or fear, tries to flee, or falls to the ground. The winning owner is then awarded a prize carpet, which would be a fat lot of good for the winning camel. One trusts it isn't made out of camel hair. Hopefully the losing camel doesn't end up in those hot dogs. Most matches end in a tie, with each one lasting ten minutes. Approximately 100 camels take part in playoffs on a match day, in a process of elimination, until an eventual winner is announced. There are about 20,000 fighting camels, usually named after world figures, in the Middle East at any given time.

Answer: Camel beauty contests

Camel beauty contests are huge spectacles in this country, drawing in massive crowds which include the area's various kings, sheikhs and tribal leaders, as well as some 25,000 four legged contestants. The prizes are equally impressive for the owner of the winning beauty, and include brand new vehicles and the knowledge that their champion is about to fetch million of dollars when sold to an eager buyer.

Specific areas of the camel are emphasised and judged in their contests in order to become a winning beauty. National Geographic and other sites state that the camel must possess - oh this is so funny - "floppy lips, nice whiskers, good ears, a proper amount of space between the toes, sturdy legs, a long neck, and a large head". Dear me, I think I'd take the crown. An elegant hump is also considered desirable, as is a lovely complexion. A camel has a complexion? To achieve that desired facial feature, the camels, most of which are females, are kept out of the sun. Females camels are looked upon as lovelier than their male counterparts. That's a consolation, because ladies of the human kind are not appreciated at these festivals. An oath must also be taken by the owner of the fair winning damsel testifying to the truth of her age and lineage. What a delightful bit of fun!