alpaca

Alpaca
An unshorn alpaca grazing
Conservation status
Domesticated
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Mammalia
Order:	Artiodactyla
Family:	Camelidae
Genus:	Vicugna
Species:	V. pacos
Binomial name
Vicugna pacos (Linnaeus, 1758)
Alpaca range

Alpaca (Vicugna pacos) is a domesticated species of South American camelid. It resembles a small llama in superficial appearance. Alpacas and llamas differ in that alpacas have straight ears and llamas have banana-shaped ears. Aside from these differences, llamas are on average 30 to 60 centimeters (1 to 2 ft) taller and proportionally bigger than alpacas.^{[citation needed]}

Alpacas are kept in herds that graze on the level heights of the Andes of Ecuador, southern Peru, northern Bolivia, and northern Chile at an altitude of 3,500 m (11,000 ft) to 5,000 m (16,000 ft) above sea-level, throughout the year.^[1] Alpacas are considerably smaller than llamas, and unlike llamas, alpacas were not bred to be beasts of burden but were bred specifically for their fiber. Alpaca fiber is used for making knitted and woven items, much as wool is. These items include blankets, sweaters, hats, gloves, scarves, a wide variety of textiles and ponchos in South America, and sweaters, socks, coats and bedding in other parts of the world. The fiber comes in more than 52 natural colors as classified in Peru, 12 as classified in Australia and 16 as classified in the United States. ^[2]

In the textile industry, "alpaca" primarily refers to the hair of Peruvian alpacas, but more broadly it refers to a style of fabric originally made from alpaca hair but now often made from similar fibers, such as mohair, Icelandic sheep wool, or even high-quality English wool.^{[citation needed]} In trade, distinctions are made between alpacas and the several styles of mohair and luster.

Background

Ceramic alpaca, Moche culture (Larco Museum, Lima)

Alpacas have been domesticated for thousands of years. The Moche people of Northern Peru often used alpaca images in their art.^[3] There are no wild alpacas. The closest living species are the wild vicuña, also native to South America, which is believed to be the wild ancestor of the alpaca.^[4] Along with camels and llamas, the alpaca are classified as camelids. The alpaca is larger than the vicuña but smaller than the other camelid species.

Of the various camelid species, the alpaca and vicuña are the most valuable fiber-bearing animals: the alpaca because of the quality and quantity of its fiber, and the vicuña because of the softness, fineness and quality of its coat. Alpacas are too small to be used as pack animals. Instead, they were bred exclusively for their fiber and meat

Alpaca meat was once considered a delicacy by Andean inhabitants. A recent resurgence in alpaca meat was curtailed by a recent change to Peruvian law granting the alpaca protected status. Today, it is illegal to slaughter or trade in alpaca meat. Because of the high price commanded by alpaca on the growing North American alpaca market, illegal alpaca smuggling has become a growing problem.^[5]

Alpacas and llamas can (and do) successfully cross-breed. The resulting offspring are called huarizo, which are valued for their unique fleece and often have gentle temperaments and are suitable for pets.

Behaviour

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Closeup of an alpaca's face

Alpacas are social herd animals that live in family groups consisting of a territorial alpha male, females and their young. They are gentle, inquisitive, intelligent and observant. As they are a prey animal, they are cautious and nervous if they feel threatened. They like having their own space and may not like an unfamiliar alpaca or human getting close, especially from behind. They warn the herd about intruders by making sharp, noisy inhalations that sound like a high pitch burro bray. The herd may attack smaller predators with their front feet, and can spit and kick. Due to the soft pads on their feet, the impact of a kick is not as dangerous as that of a hoofed animal, yet it still can give quite a bruise, and the pointed nails can inflict cuts.

Spitting

Not all alpacas spit, but all are capable of doing so. "Spit" is somewhat euphemistic; occasionally the projectile contains only air and a little saliva but alpacas commonly bring up acidic stomach contents (generally a green grassy mix) and project it onto their chosen target. Spitting is mostly reserved for other alpacas, but an alpaca will occasionally spit at humans that, for example, take away food.

For alpacas, spitting results in what is called "sour mouth". Sour mouth is characterized by a loose-hanging lower lip and a gaping mouth. This is caused by the stomach acids and unpleasant taste of the contents as they pass out of the mouth.

Some alpacas will spit when looked at, others will never spit—their personalities are very individualized and there is no hard and fast rule in terms of social behavior, although there is often a group leader, and a group trailer/runt that is picked on by others.

Physical contact

Once they know their owners and feel confident around them, alpacas may allow their backs and necks to be touched. They do not like being grabbed. Once socialized well, some alpacas tolerate being stroked or petted anywhere on their bodies, although many do not like their feet, lower legs, and especially their abdomen touched or handled. If an owner needs to catch an alpaca, the neck offers a good handle—holding the neck firmly between the arms is the best way to restrain the animal. Holding the neck from the rear with the animal's head under one's arm is also very effective.

A Bolivian man and his alpaca

Hygiene

To help alpacas control their internal parasites they have a communal dung pile, where they do not graze. Generally, males have much tidier, and fewer dung piles than females who tend to stand in a line and all go at once. One female approaches the dung pile and begins to urinate and/or defecate, and the rest of the herd often follows.

Because of their preference for using a dung pile, some alpacas have been successfully house-trained.^{[citation needed]}

Sounds

A group of alpacas

Individuals vary, but alpacas generally make a humming sound. Hums are often comfort noises, letting the other alpacas know they are present and content. The humming can take on many inflections and meanings, from questioning to a high-pitched, almost desperate, squealing when a mother is separated from her offspring.

Alpacas make a variety of sounds. When they are in danger, they make a high-pitched, shrieking whine. Some breeds are known to make a "wark" noise when excited. Strange dogs—and even cats—can trigger this reaction. To signal friendly and/or submissive behavior, alpacas "cluck," or "click" a sound possibly generated by suction on the soft palate, or possibly in the nasal cavity. This is often accompanied by a flipping up of the tail over the back.

When males fight they also scream, a warbling bird-like cry, presumably intended to terrify the opponent. Fighting determines dominance, and therefore the right to mate the females in the herd, and it is triggered by testosterone. This is why males are often kept in separate paddocks—when two dominant males get together, violent fights often occur. When males must be pastured together, it is wise to trim down the large fang-like teeth used in fights, called "fighting teeth". Although alpacas may try to bite each other, they only have a bottom row of teeth, so damage is usually minimal. When fighting they will often tangle others necks and attempt to push each other around, but they settle down after a week, as they establish dominance.

When alpacas breed, males make a similar noise called an "orgle". This is thought to possibly stimulate ovulation in the female. This can sound like a warbling or gargling noise in the back or the throat, possibly generated by movement of the tongue.^{[citation needed]}

Reproduction

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A closeup of an alpaca

A male in the act of mating, or hoping for a chance to mate, "orgles" (sings). This orgling helps to put the female in the mood, and it is believed to also help her to ovulate after mating.

Females are "induced ovulators", which means that the act of mating and the presence of semen causes them to ovulate. Occasionally, females conceive after just one breeding (which can last anywhere from 5 minutes to well over an hour; the males are "dribble ejaculators">), but occasionally do have troubles conceiving. Artificial insemination is technically difficult because the act of breeding stimulates ovulation - but it can be accomplished. Crias conceived from artificial insemination are not registerable with the Alpaca Registry.^[6]

A male is usually ready to mate for the first time between one and three years of age. A female alpaca may fully mature (physically and mentally) between 12−24 months. It is not advisable to allow a young female to be bred until she is mature, as over breeding a young female before conception is possible is a common cause of uterine infections. As the age of maturation varies greatly between individuals, it is usually recommended that novice breeders wait until females are 18 months of age or older before initiating breeding.

The young male's penis is attached to the prepuce, and generally does not detach until one to two years of age. The penis is a very long, thin, prehensile organ that is perfectly adapted for the task of finding the vaginal opening despite a fluffy tail, penetrating the hymen (if present,) navigating the vaginal canal and entering the cervical opening, where deposit of the semen occurs.

Pregnancies last 11.5 months ± 2 weeks, and usually result in a single offspring or cria. Twins are rare, approximately ¹/₁₀₀₀, much rarer than the proportion of twins in human births. After a female gives birth, she is generally receptive to breeding again after approximately two weeks. Crias may be weaned through human intervention at approximately 6 months and 60 pounds. However, many breeders prefer to allow the female to decide when to wean her offspring. Offspring can be weaned earlier or later depending on their size and emotional maturity.

Alpacas generally live for up to 20 years and occasionally longer. Conditions and nutrition are better in the USA, Australia, New Zealand and Europe than in South America, so animals live longer and are healthier.^{[citation needed]}

History of the scientific name

Shorn alpacas

The relationship between alpacas and vicuñas was disputed for many years. In the 18^th and 19^th centuries, the four South American lamoid species were assigned scientific names. At that time, the alpaca was assumed to be descended from the llama, ignoring similarities in size, fleece and dentition between the alpaca and the vicuña. Classification was complicated by the fact that all four species of South American camelid can interbreed and produce fertile offspring. It was not until the advent of DNA technology that a more accurate classification was possible.

In 2001, the alpaca genus classification changed from Lama pacos to Vicugna pacos following the presentation of a paper^[4] on work by Dr. Jane Wheeler et al. on alpaca DNA to the Royal Society showing that the alpaca is descended from the vicuña, not the guanaco. It is not clear if this will be the final word on the question.

Poisonous to alpacas

Suri alpaca

Many plants are poisonous to the alpaca, including the bracken fern, fireweed, oleander, and some azaleas. In common with similar livestock, others include: acorns, African rue, agave, Amaryllis, Autumn Crocus, Bear Grass, Broom Snakeweed, Buckwheat, Ragweed, Buttercups, Calla lily, Orange tree, Carnations, beans from the castor oil plant, Cress and a great many others.^[7]

Fiber

Alpaca fleece is a lustrous and silky natural fiber. While similar to sheep’s wool, it is warmer, not prickly, and bears no lanolin, which makes it hypoallergenic^[8][9]. Without lanolin, it does not repel water. It is also soft and luxurious. In physical structure, alpaca fiber is somewhat akin to hair, being very glossy. The preparing, carding, spinning, weaving and finishing process of alpaca is very similar to the process used for wool.

Prices

The price for American alpacas can range from US$100 for a desexed male or gelding to US$500,000 for the highest of champions in the world, depending on breeding history, sex, and color.^[10] However, according to an academic study^[11] the higher prices sought for alpaca breeding stock are largely speculative and not supported by market fundamentals, given the low inherent returns per head from the main end product alpaca fiber, and prices into the $100s per head rather than $10000s would be required for a commercially viable fiber production herd.^[12] Breeding stock prices in Australia have fallen from AU $10,000-30,000 head in 1997 to an average of AU$ 3,000-4000 today.

It is possible to raise up to 25 alpacas per hectare (10 alpacas per acre).^{[citation needed]} as they have a designated area for waste products and keep their eating area away from their waste area. But this ratio differs from country to country and is highly dependent on the quality of pasture available (in Australia it is generally only possible to run one to three animals per acre due to drought). Fiber quality is the primary variant in the price achieved for alpaca wool; in Australia it is common to classify the fiber by the thickness of the individual hairs and by the amount of vegetable matter contained in the supplied shearings.

The green livestock

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There are several aspects of the alpaca's physiology that make them more environmentally friendly than traditional livestock. This makes them an ideal livestock for sustainable agriculture. Alpacas need to eat 1-2% of body weight per day, so about two 60 lb (27 kg) bales of grass hay per month per animal. When formulating a proper diet for alpacas, water and hay analysis should be performed to determine the proper vitamin and mineral supplementation program. Two options are to provide free choice salt/mineral powder, or feed a specially formulated ration. Indigenous to the highest regions of the Andes, this harsh environment has created an extremely hardy animal, so only minimal housing and predatory fencing are needed with very little vet care.^[13] The alpaca’s 3-chambered stomachs allow for extremely efficient digestion. There is no organic matter (seeds) in the manure because alpacas prefer to only eat tender plant leaves and will not consume thick plant stems; therefore alpaca manure doesn't need composting to enrich pastures or ornamental landscaping. Alpacas live about 20 years, twice as long as sheep or cattle. Only minimal husbandry is needed, nail and teeth trimming every 6-12 months, and annual shearing. As an alpaca ages, its fiber becomes less soft (or more course) resulting in its comfort factor diminishing to the point that an alpaca breeder or farmer is paying more to maintain the alpaca than the alpaca is generating in farm income. Alpacas have only lower teeth at the front of their mouths, so they don't pull grass up by the roots, but rotating pastures is still important because alpacas have a tendency to re-graze an area repeatedly. Due to this bad habit pastures may need to be re-seeded or left inactive for an extended period. They also don’t have hooves, their padded feet are also very easy on the pastures, but like cattle they will repeatedly use the same route. Alpacas are fiber animals, they don't need to be slaughtered to reap their product, and their fiber is a renewable resource that grows yearly. Alpaca fiber comes in 22 natural colors.^[13], reducing the need for toxic dyes that harm the environment. As sheep's wool contains lanolin, detergents are required during processing. Alpacas do not have lanolin, therefore only minimal detergent is required when processing alpaca fiber. Alpaca fiber is claimed to be warmer than wool or synthetics like nylon or polyester, naturally fire resistant, and hypo-allergenic. These claims are starting to be studied more closely by different alpaca organizations around the world.

See also

• Grass Mud Horse, a parody originating from Mainland China of 2009 that features the alpaca

References

Notes

• This article incorporates text from the Encyclopædia Britannica, Eleventh Edition, a publication now in the public domain.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Alpaca

• International Alpaca Association (IAA)

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