Mammal
Alpaca
Vicugna pacosAlso known as Huacaya Alpaca, Suri Alpaca
Alpacas are social, herd-dwelling camelids renowned for their incredibly soft, lightweight fleece, which lacks lanolin and comes in over twenty natural shades. Indigenous Andean communities domesticated them thousands of years ago to thrive on the high, cold plateaus of the Altiplano. They communicate through soft humming noises, subtle ear positions, and sharp alarm calls when potential danger approaches.
DomesticatedFleeceHerbivore
—observations
—countries
—peak records
Not EvaluatedConservation statusIUCN Red List categoriesLCNTVUENCREWEXNot Evaluated — not placed on the risk ladderRed List categories, explained →
Diet & preyGrasses, sedges, foliage, hay
Predators
- Puma
- Culpeo Fox
- Domestic Dog
ThreatsPredation by wild carnivores, extreme weather, diseases
HabitatsHigh-altitude grasslands, pastures, farms
Life span15–25 years
Classification
- OrderArtiodactyla
- FamilyCamelidae
- GenusVicugna
- SpeciesVicugna pacos
Range data is not available yet.
Interaction riskLow
- Low
- Moderate
- High
- Very high
- Why interaction risk is low
- Safe to observe at a normal distance.
Responsible observation
- Approach softly: Move calmly and avoid sudden gestures around unfamiliar herds.
- Respect body language: Back away if an alpaca flattens its ears back, which signals discomfort or intent to spit.
- Feed carefully: Offer designated feed or pasture grasses flat on an open palm.
Wild Ancestor Thomas Quine / CC BY 2.0 · cc-by
Distant Cousin "Bactrian Camels" by D-Stanley is licensed under CC BY 2.0. To view a copy of this license, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/. · cc-by
Domestic Relative (c) Lucyin, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA) · cc-by-sa
Wild Relative Charles J. Sharp / CC BY-SA 4.0 · cc-by-sa
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