Broken Hill Detective Matt Murphy said the domestic camels were grazing in a private paddock 43 kilometres west of Wentworth in New South Wales when they were shot from the road with a large calibre rifle about 10 days ago.

He said the camels were used for desert exploration by universities and were not wild animals.

"They are very quiet animals," Detective Murphy said. "This is a stupid, irresponsible act."

So far no one has been charged over the incident.

Detective Murphy saidthe act followed a spate of similar attacks on animals in the region, including the shooting of several horses and donkeys at stations north of Broken Hill.

About a year ago, seven donkeys were shot from the road as they grazed in a paddock at Mordon Station, north of Broken Hill.

There have also been several incidents involving domestic horses being shot from the road as they grazed in paddocks in the area.

Detective Murphy says the violent attacks had all occurred in "the middle of nowhere" and could easily have gone unnoticed.

"We plan to alert people about these incidents," he said.