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Dromedary near Silverton, New South Wales Spread of camels in Australia, shown in yellow. Australian feral camels are introduced populations of dromedary, or one-humped, camel (Camelus dromedarius—from the Middle East, North Africa and the Indian Subcontinent).
Afghan cameleers in Australia, also known as "Afghans" (Pashto: افغانان) or "Ghans" (Pashto: غانز), were camel drivers who worked in Outback Australia from the 1860s to the 1930s. Small groups of cameleers were shipped in and out of Australia at three-year intervals, to service the Australian inland pastoral industry by carting goods ...
Sallay Mahomet, Camel Farm, Alice Springs. Sallay Mahomet (16 September 1911 – 15 July 1983), sometimes spelled Saleh, was an Afghan Australian cameleer and camel trainer who lived for much of his life at Alice Springs. Mahomet is perhaps best known for helping train Robyn Davidson for the 1977 camel expedition that is documented in her book Tracks, and a subsequent 2013 film adaptation ...
In 1868 he chartered Henry Simpson's Kohinoor to return the "Afghans" and bring out another 60 camels and a fresh contingent of attendants. [16] They became an important factor in the development of the northern area of South Australia. He also established a horse-breeding centre at Blanchetown to supply stock to the Indian market. [17]
There is ongoing debate about the potential benefits and detriments of introduced species; some experts believe that certain species, particularly megafauna such as deer, equids, bovids, and camels, may be more beneficial to Australia's ecosystems than they are detrimental, acting as replacements for extinct Australian megafauna. [3] [4]
Over one million dromedary camels are estimated to be feral in Australia, descended from those introduced as a method of transport in the 19th and early 20th centuries. [159] This population is growing about 8% per year; [ 160 ] it was estimated at 700,000 in 2008.
Although Afghans without camels are reported to have reached Australia as early as 1838, [4] in the latter part of the 19th century several thousand men from Afghanistan, Baluchistan, Kashmir, Sind, Rajasthan, Egypt, Persia, Turkey, and Punjab, but collectively known as "Afghans", were recruited during initial British development of the outback, especially for the operation of camel trains in ...
Camels had been used successfully in desert exploration in other parts of the world, but by 1859 only seven camels had been imported into Australia. The Victorian government appointed George James Landells to purchase twenty-four camels in India for use in desert exploration. [13]