By Li Hongmei

Australia's problematic wild camel population is down by a third to around 300,000, an official said Thursday, thanks to a government-funded cull that saw sharpshooters firing from helicopters and tens of thousands of animals turned into dog food.

Cattle farmers urged Canberra not to discontinue funding next month, warning that herds would replenish and once more compete with their livestock for grazing, wreck waterholes and tear down fences.

"Those camel numbers could quickly re-establish if central Australia gets a couple of good wet seasons," said Jon Condon, editor of cattle industry newsletter Beef Central.

The cull was ordered in 2009 after thirsty camels overwhelmed the community of Docker River, 500 kilometres south of Alice Springs, snapping off taps, tearing up pipes and overrunning the airstrip, cutting access to the town from the air.

The 19-million-Australian-dollar (18-million-US-dollar) programme saw helicopters in the central deserts muster camels to where they could be shot or rounded up for trucking to abattoirs.

Programme leader Jan Ferguson, who was to deliver her final report to Canberra on Thursday, said 160,000 animals had been shot, bringing the wild herd down to 300,000.

Camels imported from India for transporting goods were released in the 1900s when motor vehicles took over moving goods in the Outback.

There is no market for camel meat in Australia, so the animals are not farmed. Around 25,000 head a year are exported, mostly to the Middle East. Some of the rest are slaughtered for dog food.