Alpacas From the Andes

ANDEAN CAMELOIDS

South-American cameloids are the typical fauna of the Andes which apparently have their origins in the continent's northern part. Nevertheless, their domestication was started about 6000 years ago in the Central Andes, a process that was finished with shepherding and apparition of diverse breeds of cameloids fully domesticated toward 3500 B.C. Therefore, all or almost all the pre-Inkan Cultures used cameloids for their nourishment and clothing. It was already in Inkan times when importance was granted to a systematic cameloid nursing with programs for selecting and separating flocks according to their colors and characteristics, and enregistering their production and consumption. The Spanish invasion and conquest meant a retrogression in cameloid-culture because at first the wars and later relaxation induced to indiscriminate butchering for meat supplies. Subsequently, import of foreign cattle made cameloids' displacement to high and cold zones, to the almost deserted Andean high barren plains where some other animals could not survive.

There are two species of domesticated Andean cameloids that are the "llama" and the "alpaca", and two other non-domesticated ones that are the "guanaco" and the "vicuna". However, it apparently concerns to animals descending from two original genuses: Lama and Vicugna (more over, in the old world exists the genus "Camelus" with two species: the C. Dromedarius and the C. Bactrianus).

This article was taken from:http: //www.qosqo.com/camelids.shtml