Australian feral camels are
feral populations of two species of
camel; mostly
dromedaries (
Camelus dromedarius) but also some
bactrian camels (
Camelus bactrianus). Imported into Australia from
Arabia,
India and
Afghanistan during the 19th century for transport and construction during the colonisation of the central and western parts of
Australia, many were released into the wild after motorised transport replaced the camels' role in the early 20th, forming a fast-growing feral population.