AlpacaInteresting facts and information

Common name	Alpaca
Scientific name	Vicugna pacos
Typical lifespan	Usually 15-20 years; some live 25 years or more
Maximum speed	Speed varies with the animal and conditions; no general record is given here
Height to shoulder	About 80 - 100 cm
Length	About 1.2 - 2 m
Weight	About 50 - 85 kg
Diet type	Herbivore (grasses, hay, other plants)
Main predators	Pumas, Andean foxes, dogs; condors may take young
Conservation status	Domestic animal; wild-species threat categories do not describe individual alpaca breeds
Habitat	Andes of South America; farms around the world

• Luxurious fibre - Alpaca fibre is soft, light and warm, and it contains no lanolin, so it is popular for high-quality clothing.
• Less spitting than you think - Alpacas can spit, but they usually do it at other alpacas, during disputes over food or when a female rejects a male.
• Many colours - Alpaca fibre comes in about 22 recognised natural colours, from white and fawn to brown, grey and black.
• Tidy animals - Alpacas in a herd use shared dung piles, which makes them easy to keep clean.
• Soft feet - Alpacas have no hooves; each foot has two toes with toenails and a soft pad, which is gentle on pastures.
• Hardy grazers - They are adapted to the thin, poor pastures of the high Andes and need less food than many other livestock of their size.
• Many sounds - Alpacas hum to each other, give a shrill alarm call when they see danger, and males make a gurgling "orgle" sound when mating.

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• Extremely fine wool - The vicuña, the wild ancestor of the alpaca, produces fibre only about 12-13 micrometres thick, one of the finest natural animal fibres.
• Alpaca farming – Peru is an important centre of alpaca husbandry; exact global shares require current agricultural data.
• Long lives - Alpacas often live 15-20 years, and some have lived for more than 25 years.

The alpaca is a domestic camelid adapted to life in the high Andes, where the air is thin and nights are cold.

Distinctive appearance

• Dense, soft fleece - It protects against the cold and is one of the most valued animal fibres.
• Two types - Huacaya alpacas have fluffy, crimped fleece, while Suri alpacas have long, silky locks that hang down.
• A small head and short face - Alpacas are smaller than llamas and have shorter faces and short, spear-shaped ears.
• Padded feet - Two toes with soft pads help them walk on rocky ground without damaging the vegetation.

Survival adaptations

• Blood adapted to altitude - Their red blood cells carry oxygen efficiently in the thin air of the high mountains.
• Special teeth - They have incisors only in the lower jaw, which press against a hard dental pad in the upper jaw to cut grass.
• A three-chambered stomach - Microbes in the stomach help them digest tough, fibrous plants.

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The alpaca is a gentle herd animal; living in a group helps protect it from predators.

Social behaviour and hierarchy

• Herd animals - Alpacas feel safe only in a group and become stressed if kept alone.
• Hierarchy - There is a pecking order in the herd, and males may fight by pushing and biting.
• Communication - They use sounds, ear and tail positions and spitting to communicate.

Activity patterns

• Alpacas are active by day and graze for many hours, often resting and chewing the cud in between.
• Shared toilets - All members of a herd use the same dung piles.

Interaction with humans and other animals

• Gentle animals - Alpacas are usually calm and are kept as pets, for fibre and in animal-assisted therapy.
• Guard animals - In some countries, alpacas are kept with sheep and chickens, because they chase away foxes.

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The alpaca comes from the Andes of South America, but today it is raised in many countries around the world.

Geographic distribution

Country	Population
Peru	By far the largest population, several million animals
Bolivia	Hundreds of thousands
Chile	Tens of thousands
USA and Canada	Raised on many farms since the 1980s
Australia and New Zealand	Raised for fibre and as guard animals
Europe	Popular in the UK, Germany and other countries

Habitat types

• The high Andes (about 3,500-5,000 m) - Their original home, with cold nights, strong sun and wet grasslands called bofedales.
• Farms - Alpacas are raised for fibre and as pets in many countries.
• Temperate grassland - They adapt well to cool, temperate climates.

Habitat pressures

• Climate change - Melting glaciers and drought can dry out the high pastures and wetlands they depend on.
• Overgrazing - Too many animals can damage fragile mountain pastures.
• Competition - In some areas, alpacas share pastures with sheep and cattle.

The alpaca is a herbivore that eats mainly grasses and other plants. Its special stomach helps it digest poor-quality food.

What does the alpaca eat?

Food type	Examples
Grasses	Mountain grasses, pasture grasses, hay
Other plants	Herbs, sedges and low shrubs
Fodder	Hay and small amounts of feed on farms
Minerals	Mineral supplements on farms
Water	Fresh water every day, though they need relatively little

Adaptations for feeding

• Digesting fibre – Alpacas have a three-compartment stomach in which microbes help process fibrous plant food.
• They can live on low-quality grazing in high mountains.
• Their lower incisors and upper dental pad let them nibble grass close to the ground without pulling it out by the roots.

Eating Behavior

• Alpacas spend many hours a day grazing and chewing the cud.
• They prefer soft, tender plants and avoid tough or thorny ones.
• On farms, they are fed hay and mineral supplements when grazing is poor.

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In the Andes, most alpaca young are born in the rainy season, when grass is plentiful.

Breeding and birth

Characteristic	Details
Sexual maturity	About 12-24 months (females), 2-3 years (males)
Gestation	About 11-11.5 months
Number of young	1 (twins are very rare)
Weight at birth	About 6-9 kg
Weaning	About 6 months
Independence	About 6-12 months

• Alpacas mate lying down, in a position called "cush".
• Females do not have regular cycles; mating triggers ovulation (induced ovulation).
• Most births happen in the morning, giving the young time to dry and warm up before the cold night.

Raising young

• A baby alpaca is called a "cria"; it usually stands and walks within about an hour of birth.
• Mothers are very protective, and the herd helps watch for danger.
• Crias drink milk for the first months and soon start nibbling grass.

Longevity

• Alpacas usually live about 15-20 years.
• With good care, some live 25 years or more.

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The alpaca was domesticated in the Andes thousands of years ago and has been important to Andean peoples ever since.

Origin of the name

• "Alpaca" comes through Spanish from the Aymara word allpaqa.
• The scientific name Vicugna pacos shows that the alpaca is a domestic descendant of the vicuña.

Taxonomic classification

Kingdom	Animalia
Phylum	Chordata
Class	Mammalia
Order	Artiodactyla
Family	Camelidae
Genus	Vicugna
Species	Vicugna pacos

History and domestication

• Alpacas were domesticated from wild vicuñas in the Andes about 6,000-7,000 years ago, long before the Inca Empire.
• In the Inca Empire, the finest cloth, made from alpaca and vicuña fibre, was reserved for nobles and religious use.
• After the Spanish conquest, alpaca numbers fell sharply, and the best herds survived mainly in remote highlands.

Alpaca in Andean culture

Culture	Meaning
Incas	A source of fine cloth, wealth and status; also used in religious offerings
Aymara and Quechua herders	The basis of life in the high Andes, providing fibre, meat, dung for fuel and income
Modern Andean traditions	Festivals and rituals for the fertility and health of the herds

Traditions and beliefs

• Herd rituals - Andean herders hold ceremonies in which they decorate their alpacas and llamas with coloured tassels and ask Pachamama (Mother Earth) for healthy herds.
• Textiles - Weaving with alpaca fibre is an important tradition in the Andes, with patterns passed down through generations.

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The alpaca is a domestic animal and is not endangered. Its wild ancestor, the vicuña, was nearly wiped out in the 20th century but has recovered thanks to protection.

Main threats to alpaca herding

• Climate change - Drought and melting glaciers threaten high Andean pastures.
• Vicuña poaching - Wild vicuñas are still sometimes killed illegally for their valuable fibre.
• Changes in farming - Crossbreeding with llamas and the loss of traditional herding can reduce the quality of alpaca fibre.

Conservation status

Species	Status
Vicugna pacos (alpaca)	Domestic animal; not assessed by the IUCN
Vicugna vicugna (vicuña)	Least Concern (IUCN), after a strong recovery

Conservation efforts

• Trade rules - International trade in vicuña fibre is controlled, and only fibre from live-shorn animals can be sold.
• Protected areas - Reserves in Peru, Bolivia, Chile and Argentina protect vicuñas and their habitat.
• Breeding programmes - Farmers and researchers work to keep alpaca breeds healthy and their fibre fine.

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Thanks to their friendly faces and fluffy coats, alpacas have become very popular around the world.

Alpacas in media

• Social media - Photos and videos of alpacas, often with dramatic haircuts after shearing, are widely shared online.
• Children's books - Alpacas are popular characters in picture books.
• Confusion with llamas - Alpacas are often confused with their larger relatives, the llamas.

Alpacas in marketing and tourism

• Mascots - Alpacas are used as mascots for clothing, toy and tourism brands.
• Luxury - Alpaca fibre is associated with premium knitwear.
• Alpaca walks - On many farms in Europe and North America, visitors can go for walks with alpacas.

Alpacas as symbols

• Calm and gentleness - Alpacas are often used as a symbol of calm and kindness.
• Peru - The alpaca is one of the best-known symbols of Peru and the Andes.
• Plush toys - Soft alpaca toys are popular souvenirs in Peru and elsewhere.