I would like this information, preferably from reliable data collection, in order to carry out FAR dung survey methods to estimate camel populations in Dhofar, Oman. It could save me a lot of time!
OOH it depends on the foraged plants, their fiber contents, availability any many environmental factors that directly or indirectly affect the frequency of defecation
In addition to what Imadeddin said you may want to know that some plants regularly grazed by camels cause diarrhoea! During rain season camel dung is soft and often pellets are not formed so perhaps you may want to carry out a dung survey during the dry season. Is your study done to specifically test a dung survey method or your objective is to estimate camel number?
It depends on many factors like the type of feeds, roughage to concentrate ratio, succulent feeds, water intake, and even stress of exercise (running).
Dear Lawrence
As long as I understand, you want to get a figure of the camel population and better a picture of the camel grazing/browsing pressure. Such grazing pressure is probably as heterogeneous as the foraged plant distribution, so sampling may be very tricky... I don't know about the defecation habits of camels, but very mobile animals or animals with latrine behaviour (horses) may defecate far from the grazing area...
Did you consider using remote image analyses for a better sampling?
Why not using last available technologies (drone + RGB or IR camera + GPS) for counting camels on large areas, as well as getting valuable plant density and so on... including seasonal variations in green matter availability.
Local knowledge about camel grazing behaviour may help to design the drone flight sequences in order to optimise the observation of grazing camels (probably better early in the morning or late in the afternoon, when long shadows should make easier image analysis).
Regards
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