34 NATURE-STUDY REVIEW [16:1— Jan., 1920 



bird in the zoo should have a background in the child's mind and 

 imagination that would give a fair picture of its native surround- 

 ings. Then indeed would the child know real and vital things 

 about the geography of the earth. The following studies of four 

 zoo-animals have been made to show their adaptations to very 

 different geographical environment. 



THE CAMEL 



Nature has fitted one large animal, and only one, to live in the 

 desert, — the camel. Its large, broad feet, with cushion-like pads 

 do not sink into the soft sand as the feet of other animals would. 

 And although it cannot travel over the ground as fast as a horse, 

 yet it moves rapidly over the sands, and can travel all day for 

 several days without water, a feat which no other animal could 

 accomplish. It also requires very little food, and thrives upon 

 the lean and scraggly thorn bushes which it finds growing sparsely 

 along the way. Occasionally the camel driver feeds his animal a 

 handful of dates, but in the main the camel is able to feed on its 

 hump. How does it do this? Does it reach around and bite off 

 a piece every now and then? No, by feeding on its hump, I mean 

 that the food needed by the blood to nourish the tired muscles, 

 is absorbed by the blood streams as they run through the veins in 

 the hump part of the back, which is mainly made up of fatty 

 substance stored away for times of need. When a camel reaches 

 the end of a very long desert journey, its hump has dwindled in 

 size, but with rest and plenty of food it soon regains its normal 

 size again. This ability to go without food and water especially 

 fits the camel for desert life where wells are three or four days 

 journey apart. The camel has four compartments to its stomach. 

 One of these is lined with little water cells, and in this compart- 

 ment as much as a gallon and a half of water may be stored. At 

 times this water rises to moisten the throat and the dry lips. A 

 camel is able to go without water for as long as ten days at a time, 

 but when it finally does come to a well, dear me, what a drink it 

 does take. It drinks for the past, the present, and for the future, 

 all in one draught! The camel will travel 18 miles a day, under a 

 burning sun, and over scorching sands and carry a load weighing 

 as much as 6oo pounds. And it does this as we have said with 

 no water, for ten days, and with very little food. Truly it is a 

 wonderful beast 



