It is well-suited to survive the harsh conditions here, such as the limited plants and water, and the extremely cold and dry temperatures. It can move between the rocky mountains of Western Mongolia and the sand dunes of the Gobi desert in the south. It is a good herd animal for the nomadic people in Mongolia, because it can travel long distances.
The bactrian camel can survive for months without drinking water, which is why it is useful in the desert. It can also eat almost anything, including tough shrubs, thick meat, and prickly, bitter or dry herbs. It is a very adaptable animal. Instead of using its environment to survive, it manages to survive in the most difficult of environments! Most other animals would die in such climates. On the contrary, the bactrian camel thrives in such unforgiving areas of Mongolia and China.
While hundreds of thousands of bactrian camels have been domesticated (which means they are now owned by people), in Mongolia and northern China, wild bactrian camels (camels that are not owned by people) are critically endangered. They are threatened by global warming making the climate even more extreme, drying up the deserts they live in. If you are worried about the bactrian camel, you can take steps to recycle and to emit less carbon into the atmosphere. Those actions will help to protect the bactrian camel's environment, all the way on the other side of the world!
