A cama is a
hybrid between a male
dromedary
The dromedary (''Camelus dromedarius''), also known as the dromedary camel, Arabian camel and one-humped camel, is a large camel of the genus '' Camelus'' with one hump on its back. It is the tallest of the three camel species; adult males sta ...
camel and a female
llama
The llama (; or ) (''Lama glama'') is a domesticated South American camelid, widely used as a List of meat animals, meat and pack animal by Inca empire, Andean cultures since the pre-Columbian era.
Llamas are social animals and live with ...
, and has been produced via
artificial insemination
Artificial insemination is the deliberate introduction of sperm into a female's cervix or uterine cavity for the purpose of achieving a pregnancy through in vivo fertilization by means other than sexual intercourse. It is a fertility treatment ...
at the Camel Reproduction Centre in
Dubai
Dubai (Help:IPA/English, /duːˈbaɪ/ Help:Pronunciation respelling key, ''doo-BYE''; Modern Standard Arabic, Modern Standard Arabic: ; Emirati Arabic, Emirati Arabic: , Romanization of Arabic, romanized: Help:IPA/English, /diˈbej/) is the Lis ...
.
The first cama was born on January 14, 1998. The aim was to create an animal capable of higher wool production than the llama, with the size and strength of a camel and a cooperative temperament.
[
]
Breeding
The crossing was initially reported by ''The Ogdensburg Journal'' in 1871.
The dromedary has 74
diploid
Ploidy () is the number of complete sets of chromosomes in a cell, and hence the number of possible alleles for autosomal and pseudoautosomal genes. Here ''sets of chromosomes'' refers to the number of maternal and paternal chromosome copies, ...
chromosomes, the same as other camelids. The
autosome
An autosome is any chromosome that is not a sex chromosome. The members of an autosome pair in a diploid cell have the same morphology, unlike those in allosomal (sex chromosome) pairs, which may have different structures. The DNA in autosomes ...
s consist of five pairs of small to medium-sized
metacentrics and
submetacentrics.
The
X chromosome
The X chromosome is one of the two sex chromosomes in many organisms, including mammals, and is found in both males and females. It is a part of the XY sex-determination system and XO sex-determination system. The X chromosome was named for its u ...
is the largest in the metacentric and submetacentric group. There are 31 pairs of
acrocentric
The centromere links a pair of sister chromatids together during cell division. This constricted region of chromosome connects the sister chromatids, creating a short arm (p) and a long arm (q) on the chromatids. During mitosis, spindle fibers ...
s.
[ The dromedary's ]karyotype
A karyotype is the general appearance of the complete set of chromosomes in the cells of a species or in an individual organism, mainly including their sizes, numbers, and shapes. Karyotyping is the process by which a karyotype is discerned by de ...
is similar to that of the Bactrian camel.guanaco
The guanaco ( ; ''Lama guanicoe'') is a camelid native to South America, closely related to the llama. Guanacos are one of two wild South American camelids; the other species is the vicuña, which lives at higher elevations.
Etymology
The gua ...
and a female llama. He was also a behavioral disappointment, displaying an extremely poor temperament. The second cama, a female named Kamilah, was successfully born in 2002. As of April 2008, five camas had been produced.
Food and drink
Much like camels, camas are herbivores that eat shrubs and other plant matter. As they can drink large amounts of water at a time, camas can survive with little or no water for long periods.
Comparison of camelids
The camelid family consists of the Old World camelids (the dromedary camels, Bactrian camels, and wild Bactrian camel
The wild Bactrian camel (''Camelus ferus'') is an endangered species of camel endemic to Northwest China and southwestern Mongolia. It is closely related but not ancestral to the domestic Bactrian camel (''Camelus bactrianus''). Genetics, Geneti ...
s) and the New World camelids (the llama, vicuna, suri alpaca
The alpaca (''Lama pacos'') is a species of South American camelid mammal. Traditionally, alpacas were kept in herds that grazed on the level heights of the Andes of Southern Peru, Western Bolivia, Ecuador, and Northern Chile. More recentl ...
, huacaya alpaca, and guanaco
The guanaco ( ; ''Lama guanicoe'') is a camelid native to South America, closely related to the llama. Guanacos are one of two wild South American camelids; the other species is the vicuña, which lives at higher elevations.
Etymology
The gua ...
). Though there have been successful and fertile hybrids within each major groups of camelids, the cama marks the first instance of cross-breeding between the two groups. The following is a table comparing some of the characteristics of camelids.[Frequently Asked Questions - Blue Moon Ranch Alpacas]
/ref>Guinness World Records
''Guinness World Records'', known from its inception in 1955 until 1999 as ''The Guinness Book of Records'' and in previous United States editions as ''The Guinness Book of World Records'', is a British reference book published annually, list ...
Largest species of camel
/ref>
See also
* Hybrid camel
* Huarizo
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cama (Animal)
Camelid hybrids
Intergeneric hybrids