Which EDGE mammal interests you more: The Bactrian camel or the African wild donkey ? (poll)

Another poll in a series for zoochatters to vote for one of two EDGE mammal species. This time the Bactrian camel and the African wild donkey / ass.

Both are critically endangered hoofstock which have been domesticated by humans and both native to arid desert environments where they face similar threats from overhunting and competition from livestock.





Which of these mammal species interests you most / will you vote for ?

Please also feel free to write comments regarding why you made the choice and why the species you have voted for interests you more.

Thanks !

Look forward to seeing the results!

Photo credit to @Therabu and @Bubalus.

 

No votes for the African wild donkey yet ?

 

Thanks for voting @bongorob and @Pleistohorse !

Why the African wild donkey ?

 

As always, an extremely difficult question to answer as both are very interesting.

I've never seen a wild Bactrian camel and, almost certainly, never will. Normally, in such polls, I would consider the animal I've never seen to be the most interesting; however, much as I would love to see a wild Bactrian camel, I voted for African wild donkey.

I still remember how excited I was to see Somali wild ass for the first time (in Basle Zoo in 1981); they immediately became one of my favourite animals and, although I've now seen them many times, I never tire of watching them. I just had to vote for African wild donkey.

I also recall seeing so-called Nubian wild ass at Catskill in 1984. My frustration at discovering that they are now not considered to have been purebred, made me very interested in this form; this is another reason I voted for African wild ass.

 

Thank you for voting and your comment @Tim May ! Much appreciated !

The African wild donkey is an interesting species indeed and particularly the Somali wild ass and especially from a conservation perspective.

I know what you mean about the species that hasn't been seen as I don't think I've actually ever seen an African wild donkey, however, I personally voted for the Bactrian camel as I do find camels quite endearing and interesting animals.

 

Interesting to see how quickly the gap has narrowed between the two species in terms of votes.

 

I don’t consider myself a “horse person”, but I really enjoy the Wild Equids. The Somali Wild Ass is my favorite of them. The Asian Wild Asses, the Zebras, and the Mongolian Wild Horse are very close behind. They just fascinate me. Some of the more “primitive” looking and semi-feral ponies are pretty cool too. I jumped at the chance to express my interest in the entire clan by voting for the African Wild Donkey.

 

Thanks for sharing @Pleistohorse !

Interesting, I'm in the same boat in that regard.

I'm not at all a horse person but some of the more "primitive" looking species and breeds I to be really very beautiful and striking and particularly as they resemble some of the animals depicted in prehistoric cave paintings I've seen in France and Spain.

 

Looks like the Bactrian camel has the slightest edge over the African wild donkey.

@LowlandGorilla4 , @The Cassowary, @Jude T , @chaotic_froggie , @amur leopard , @Cassidy Casuar , @snowleopard , @African Grey , would any of you guys like to comment on why you voted for this species ? what makes it charismatic for you ?

 

I find the equids more fascinating to me, they are almost streamlined creatures built for speed and power. I think my love for them is mostly due to see the wild equid species at the San Diego Zoo Safari Park such as Somali Wild Ass, Przewalski’s Horse, and Grevy’s Zebras. I actually had the opportunity to feed a Przewalski’s Horse during a tour Although I wouldn’t mind seeing a truly wild Bactrian Camel but the ass has my full attention!

 

Thanks for sharing @Julio C Castro !

San Diego do seem to have an excellent equid collection and the landscape in which they are displayed in probably makes them all the more enjoyable to watch I imagine.

That is incredible ! The Przewalski horse is probably my favourite equid as it is the kind of species (rightly or wrongly in light of new evidence) that has that sort of prehistoric aura of primeval Eurasia over it.

What was it like to feed one of these animals ?

 

The Przewalski’s Horse definitely has that ice age era appearance to it! It was very exciting, they gave us somewhat larger carrot slices so we can feed through their fencing and I was too nervous to get bit so I held the carrot at the very opposite end

 

I totally agree, there is a prehistoric (Magdalenian / Ice Age era) cave painting site in Asturias, Northern Spain called la cueva de Tito Bustillo which is one of the only ones still open to the public to visit. Amongst species portrayed like red deer and reindeer there are two fairly large images of horses which look strikingly / uncannily like Przewalski's horse.

I met and spoke to one of the people who discovered the cave by accident in the 1960's and he described the horse as the first image that they saw and how it emerged out of the darkness with the torch light and moved everyone present to shocked silence.

Centro de Arte Rupestre Tito Bustillo

It must have been an incredible experience to have fed these animals and I know what you mean about worrying about getting bitten.

These horses do have a bit of a reputation for biting and they also look quite intimidating don't they ?

 

That’s awesome! I’d love to see primitive cave paintings and I heard about the recent cave paintings that date older than most, I wish I saved the article but it brought up the idea that humans may have existed longer than previously thought We were warned about not holding onto the food but even with the fencing in place, I know I could end up being bitten by own dumb fault and I learned the hard way when a mule in Mexico gave me a warning bite

 

Well there are a lot within the South Western USA that are quite ancient and if you cross over down into Nothern and Central Mexico and the Baja California penninsula you can find an enormous amount of cave paintings and petroglyphs.

Yes, they are discovering cave paintings all the time and particularly in South-East Asia which seem to push the date back of the "out of Africa" exodus hypothesis even further than was previously thought possible. It is really a very interesting topic.

I know what you mean lol , mules can be very temperamental.

I think I would be slightly nervous with feeding a Przewalski horse too as they have some pretty daunting looking ghashers and from what I've heard they can be quite fiesty too.

 

That could change the origins of human life as we know it with these recent discoveries, perhaps it will also give new dates to certain species as to when they might’ve lived and exactly how long. Not only their teeth scare me but also their power and size definitely warrants respect and caution even with a barrier in place

 

Well, as much as I love equids my vote goes to the Bactrian camel simply because I've had more experience with them. I remember visiting the Detroit Zoo and seeing a baby camel and absolutely falling in love.

 

Thank you for voting and your comment @LowlandGorilla4 !

I would say the same in my case too, I find camels to be really endearing and fascinating mammals and a bit more so than equids hence why the Bactrian got my vote in this particular poll.

 

Looks like the African wild donkey very narrowly won this poll !

Here is a video of a vocal individual of the species called "Luke" at Oklahoma City zoo to celebrate its victory in the poll:



and some old / vintage documentary footage on the Somali wild ass in its natural habitat:

 

If I noticed this poll earlier, I would have chosen the Wild Bactrian camel and would have brought it up to a tie lol. I find camels really endearing and fascinating animals, and Particularly the survival strategies of the wild Bactrian camel that gets me so very interested in seeing one in the wild. (However that's quite impossible).