Camels do not store water in their humps at all; the humps are mostly fat reserves, while the water they drink is distributed through their bloodstream and tissues, helped by special desert adaptations.

Quick Scoop: Where do camels store water?

  • Camels’ humps store fat, not water.
  • The water they drink is held throughout the body, especially in the blood and other tissues.
  • Their oval-shaped red blood cells can swell with lots of water without bursting, acting like tiny flexible “water balloons.”
  • Super-efficient kidneys and intestines pull maximum water back into the body, so very little is lost in urine and poop.
  • They can drink huge amounts in one go (around 20–30 gallons / 75–115 liters) and then go about a week without drinking, depending on conditions.

So what’s the deal with the hump?

  • The hump is a fat mound used for energy when food is scarce.
  • When a camel uses up that fat, the hump can droop or shrink; with rest and food, it firms back up.
  • Storing fat in one place (the hump) instead of all over the body helps keep the rest of the body cooler and reduces overheating and water loss.

How they actually “store” water

It’s more accurate to say camels are experts at conserving water rather than storing it in a single tank.

  • Blood: Their oval red blood cells can carry a lot of water and still flow well even when the animal is dehydrated.
  • Kidneys: They produce very concentrated urine, holding onto as much water as possible.
  • Intestines: They pull extra water out of food and out of material passing through, so feces are very dry.
  • Nose: Structures in the nose help trap moisture from exhaled air and recycle it, so they lose less water when breathing.

Why people think “water in the hump”

  • Old desert travel stories and simple “ship of the desert” explanations turned into the popular myth that the hump is a water tank.
  • Modern zoo signs, documentaries, and science explain that the hump is fat, while water is managed throughout the body instead.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.