Hoofed animals
Alpaca
Lama guanicoe f. pacos
Species originDomesticated
Alpaca
- Description
- A domesticated South American camelid without a hump. It stands 80–100 cm at the withers and weighs 55–85 kg. The body is covered in a dense, soft fleece, the neck is long and the small head carries a tuft of wool above the eyes. Two breeds are kept: the huacaya with a crimped fleece standing out from the body, and the suri with long spiralling locks.
- Habitat
- Its original home is the high Andean plateau of Peru, Bolivia and Chile at 3,500–5,000 m, where temperatures swing by tens of degrees in a single day. Being undemanding, it is now kept all over the world.
- Diet
- A herbivore. It grazes grass and herbs and is given hay in winter. As a ruminant with a three-chambered stomach it uses its food remarkably well — it needs considerably less than a sheep of comparable weight.
- Reproduction
- Gestation lasts about 11.5 months and a single young, called a cria, is born weighing 6–8 kg. It is on its feet within an hour. Weaning takes place at around six months.
- Lifespan
- 15–20 years.
- Did you know?
- Alpaca wool contains no lanolin and therefore does not irritate even sensitive skin. It occurs naturally in twenty-two shades from white to coal black, so it need not be dyed. Alpacas are also tidy animals — the whole herd uses one communal dung pile.
Homeland & habitat
Where the alpaca lives
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The Andes (Peru, Bolivia, Chile)A domesticated animal from the high Andean plateau at 3,500–5,000 m; undemanding and prized for its fleece, it is now kept all over the world.
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Native rangeIntroduced / also today
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9 facts about the alpaca
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- GroupHoofed animalsSudokopytníci (Artiodactyla) · Velbloudovití (Camelidae)
- Scientific nameLama guanicoe f. pacosLatin name of the species
- Homeland & habitatPůvodní domovinou jsou vysokohorské pláně And v Peru, Bolívii a Chile ve výškách 3 500–5 000 m, kde denní teploty kolísají o desítky stupňů. Díky nenáročnosti se dnes chová po celém světě.
- DietBýložravec. Spásá trávu a byliny, v zimě dostává seno. Jako přežvýkavec má třídílný žaludek a potravu využije mimořádně důkladně — vystačí si s podstatně menší dávkou než ovce srovnatelné hmotnosti.
- ReproductionBřezost trvá přibližně 11,5 měsíce a rodí se jediné mládě, zvané cria, o hmotnosti 6–8 kg. Na nohou stojí do hodiny po porodu. Odstav probíhá zhruba po šesti měsících.
- Lifespan15–20 let.
- Conservation statusDomesticatedA domesticated form — not found in the wild
- Did you know…?Alpačí vlna neobsahuje lanolin, a nedráždí proto pokožku ani alergikům. Přirozeně se vyskytuje ve dvaadvaceti odstínech od bílé po uhlově černou, takže se nemusí barvit. Alpaky jsou navíc pořádkumilovné — celé stádo chodí na jedno společné místo.
- Where in the zooArea B — enclosures among the pools
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