Lesser Syrian Camel (Camelus concordiae)
fig 1. A Camelus concordiae approaching a watering hole in the El Kowm Basin in Late Pleistocene Syria, in the foreground are goitered gazelles (Gazella subgutturosa).
Taxonomy
The lesser Syrian Camel (Camelus concordiae) is an extinct member of the Old World Camels. The species belongs to the genus Camelus which is represented by three extant species: The Bactrian Camel (Camelus bactrianus), the Wild Bactrian Camel (Camelus ferus), and the Dromedary (Camelus dromedarius), and a number of extinct species. The etymology of ‘Camelus’ is ‘Camel’. ‘Concordiae’ means peace or harmony as is a wish for the end to violence in Syria where it was discovered where, as of the time of Camelus concordiae’s official description, the Syrian civil war is ongoing (1).
Distribution and Age
Camelus concordiae is only known from the site of Hummal, located in the El Kowm Basin of Central Syria. No direct dating of the species exists, but based on archaeological remains associated with the fossils belonging to the Mousterian Technology age, we can approximate the age at 50-100kya (1). A number of small camel remains at El Kowm dating to the early Middle Pleistocene may also belong to Camelus concordiae, but this remains to be demonstrated (1). Additionally, small camelid fossils from the Late Pleistocene have been found in non-arid and woodland habitats, which are generally ascribed to wild dromedary but could belong to the lesser Syrian camel which was not a desert specialist (1).
Fig 2. Fossil sites and Putative fossil sites of Camelus concordiae as suggested by Martini et al 2019 (1) as well as landscape samples of areas in the region.
Morphology and Ecology
The species is a bit smaller than the extant dromedary, which makes it one of the smallest Old world camels ever discovered at an estimated 300-600kg (1). It resembles the dromedary not only in size but also in morphology. Noticeable differences do occur, for instance, the Camelus concordiae has a comparatively small head in relation to its body, the head was also relatively long. Little can be inferred about the rest of the body based on current remains (1). The relation between Camelus dromedarius and Camelus concordiae is unclear, morphology suggests they are closely related but the differences were considered sufficient to classify them as separate species (1). Domestication could account for morphological discrepancies, but dromedaries are larger than Camelus concordiae which is irregular for a domesticated species (1), even so it is a possible candidate for the ancestor of modern dromedaries.
El Kowm was a dry-steppe, which yields a number of other megafaunal species. It co-existed with the giant Syrian camel Camelus moreli . Camels, equids, and gazelles dominate the megafauna fossil record, but the rhinoceros Stephanorhinus, a large bovid, antelopes, and a number of less common species are also known from El Kowm (1). The area was also home to a number of predators, large felids are known from the area but have not yet been classified (1), both the Lion (Panthera leo) and Leopard (Panthera pardus) were probably present, both of which could be predators of the lesser Syrian camel . Hyenas and smaller canids are also known from the site (1).
Citations
Martini, P., Costeur, L., Le Tensorer, J-M., Schmid, P..(2019). ‘Chapter 5: A giant and a small camel lived side by side in the Late Pleistocene of Syria’ in Martini, P.. (2019). Camel fossils from the El Kowm Basin, Syria. Diversity and evolution. PhD Thesis, University of Basel, Basel.