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An Australian First: Feral Camels Sold in Online Auction

Phil Mercer

   SYDNEY - Forthefirst time,wild camels have been sold on Australia's
   leading online livestock auction.Australia has the world's largest herd
   of feral camels that were introduced in the 1840s.

   Auctioneers in Australia weren't sure if the group of 93 Arabian camels
   would sell online,but they allsold foras much as$230 each.

   Most were bought to keep prickly weeds under control on farms, and
   there was interest from domestic meat traders.The animals had been
   rounded up, or mustered, by helicopter on a remote property in
   Queensland.

   Scott Taylor is aselling agentwho helped arrange the auction.He says it
   took two days for all the wild camels to be caught.

   "They came in, I think it was probably about 60kilometers back to the
   yards.They were mustered in over a two-day period.Yeah, they just came
   straight in out of the bush and into the yards, and it is surprising
   how quickly they settled down once theygetinto captivity,for being a
   feral animal,"Taylor said

   Almost 100 animals were sold onAuctionsPlus, an online
   servicethatnormally trades in cattle, sheep and goats.

   It is estimated there are at least 300,000 feral camels in central
   Australia.They can often compete with livestock for scarce supplies
   ofwater. Thousandsbeen killedbyfarmers.They have been declared
   agricultural pests by state authorities, including Western
   Australia.Wild herds are also considered to be a health and safety risk
   to isolated indigenous communities.

   The animals were imported from South Asia and elsewhere in the mid-19th
   century.They were used in colonial Australia as transport, but when
   they were superseded by motor vehicles, many were released into the
   wild or escaped.They have, like other invasive species, adapted to
   Australia's harsh conditions.

   Australia has had a long and disastrous record of importing animals
   that have become uncontrollable feral pests, including cats, foxes,
   pigs and cane toads.

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