The Mongolian & Chinese Gobi Desert Two-Humped Bactrian Camel
(Camelus bactrianus)

• The Wild Bactrian Camel is the only truly wild two-humped camel in the world.
  
• This camel is native to the largest desert in Asia, the Mongolian and Chinese Gobi Desert.
  
• This inhospitable, waterless area was China’s former nuclear test site.
  
• With population estimates between 750-900, the Wild Bactrian Camel is more endangered than the Giant Panda.
  
• The Global Environment Facility (GEF) in Washington has recently provided a generous grant which will partially fund the establishment of a 107,000 square kilometer protection area (the Lop Nur Nature Sanctuary) in China’s Xingjiang Province to protect the highly endangered Wild Bactrian Camel.
  
• Highly toxic illegal mining and callous hunting for sport are the latest threats to this species.
  
• The State Environment Protection Administration of China (SEPA) has officially approved the establishment of the Sanctuary and will sign a document initiated by the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) in conjunction with the Wild Camel Protection Foundation.
  
• The Wild Camel Protection Foundation, with patron Jane Goodall, is seeking to raise additional funds to complete this remarkable venture.
  
• The National Geographic Society is financing a 1999 expedition into the Gobi which will undertake a further survey of the population.
  
• The HEF Foundation has been approached by the founder of this project, Mr. John Hare, to provide scientific and educational support to increase the numbers and breeding capacity of the Wild Bactrian Camel.
  

Two-humped Bactrian Camel in Mongolia.