Swiss archaeologists from the universities of Basel and Zurich have discovered the bones of a giant camel while excavating in the grasslands of central Syria.
This is a previously unknown species of camel, standing over 3 meters tall at the shoulder. The animal was nearly as tall as a giraffe.
According to the archaeologists, this camel lived about 100,000 years ago and was nearly twice the size of modern camels. Professor Jean-Marie Le Tensorer from the University of Basel confirms that this represents a novel species of camel.
The camel was discovered near the village of El Kown, located 120 kilometers northeast of Palmyra. This area is also where archaeologists found one of the oldest known human settlements, dating back nearly a million years.
Among numerous stone tools, many shoulder bones, legs, and jaws of the giant camel were excavated. Due to their unique shape, the foot bones allowed for the identification of the fossilized animal.
According to Professor Le Tensorer, this giant camel might have been a target for hunting. This discovery has shed light on the evolutionary process of camels, which remains poorly understood to this day. It is still unknown which species emerged first: the one-humped or the two-humped camel.
