Mammals Codexery

Alpaca

Domesticated South American camelid valued for its fine fiber.

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Alpaca

Cgoodwin · CC BY-SA 3.0

They are social herd animals that live in family groups with a territorial alpha male, females, and their young.[1]

Scientific classification

  1. KingdomAnimalia
  2. PhylumChordata
  3. InfraclassPlacentalia
  4. OrderArtiodactyla
  5. FamilyCamelidae
  6. GenusLama
  7. SpeciesLama pacos

Named by (Linnaeus, 1758)

Close relatives

Other species of Lama with a Codexery entry.

Sources: Wikipedia taxobox: Alpaca (CC BY-SA 4.0) · order, family and genus agree with WoRMS AphiaID 1603286 (CC BY 4.0)

Quick Facts

Genus
Lama
Species
pacos

Facts from the source article.

Biology and range

In 2001, the alpaca genus classification changed from Lama pacos to Vicugna pacos following DNA analysis showing descent from the vicuña.[2] Huacaya alpacas constitute about 90% of the population, while Suri alpacas represent around 10%.[3] Females are induced ovulators, meaning the act of mating and the presence of semen causes them to ovulate.[4] Shoulder height for a mature alpaca ranges from 81 to 99 cm, with body weight falling between 48 and 90 kg.[5]

Peru is the original home of alpacas, though captive populations exist worldwide.[6] High-altitude mountain regions with temperate climates are the typical habitat for alpacas.[7] Herds of alpacas were historically raised on the grassy plains and slopes of the Andes, spanning from Ecuador and Peru through Western Bolivia and into Northern Chile, usually at elevations between 3500 and 5000 meters.[8] No wild populations of alpacas exist; the vicuña is their closest wild relative and ancestral species.[8]

A single offspring, called a cria, is the usual result of a gestation period averaging 11.5 months.[9]

What the specialist sources record

The GBIF Backbone Taxonomy lists Lama pacos (Linnaeus, 1758) as a synonym for the species, with 446 occurrence records as of October 2026.[10] A news article from 2012 reports that two male alpacas named Hernandes and Zapata were guarding sheep from predators at a National Trust farm in North Wales.[11] The farm manager stated that the alpacas helped more lambs survive than might have been the case without them.[11] Images of alpacas were frequently incorporated into the artwork of the Moche people from Northern Peru, as documented in a 1997 publication.[12][8]

References

  1. Wikipedia, "Alpaca" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Franklin, "Guard Llamas: A part of integrated sheep protection", Iowa State University, July 1994; "Alpaca super nannies protecting sheep in North Wales" (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
  2. Wikipedia, "Alpaca" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Kadwell, "Genetic analysis reveals the wild ancestors of the llama and the alpaca", Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, December 2001, p. 2575–2584 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  3. Wikipedia, "Alpaca" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Wheeler, "South American Camelids – Past. Present and Future", Journal of Camelid Science, 2012, p. 1–24; Merrell, "Huacaya alpacas", Gateway Alpacas (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  4. Wikipedia, "Alpaca" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Effect of different mating stimuli on induction of ovulation in the alpaca", J. Reprod. Fertil., 1970, p. 261–267; Sumar, J., P. W. Bravo, and W. C. Foote. "Sexual receptivity and time of ovulation in alpacas." Small Ruminant Research 11.2 (1993): 143-150.; Chen, "Semen-induced ovulation in the Bactrian camel (Camelus bactrianus)", Reproduction, 1985-07-01, p. 335–339 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  5. Wikipedia, "Alpaca" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: ; Windsor, "Effects of parasitic infestation on the productivity of alpacas (Lama pacos)", Tropical Animal Health and Production, 1992-03-01, p. 57–62 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  6. Wikipedia, "Alpaca" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Wambugu, "Where Do Alpacas Live?", WorldAtlas, 2018-08-09; Acebes, "Vicugna vicugna", The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, 2018 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  7. Wikipedia, "Alpaca" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Wambugu, "Where Do Alpacas Live?", WorldAtlas, 2018-08-09 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  8. Wikipedia, "Alpaca" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Berrin, "The Spirit of Ancient Peru: Treasures from the Museo Arqueológico Rafael Larco Herrera", Thames and Hudson, 1997; "Harvesting of textile animal fibres", UN Food and Agriculture Organization (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
  9. Wikipedia, "Alpaca" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Breeding and Birthing", Northwest Alpacas; "Alpacas 101", Parris Hill Farms (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  10. GBIF Backbone Taxonomy and occurrence index, Lama pacos (taxon key 5220189). CC BY 4.0 (backbone); counts are facts. gbif.org
  11. "Alpaca super nannies protecting sheep in North Wales". facts only, no text reused. farminguk.com
  12. Open Library record, ISBN 0500018022 ("The spirit of ancient Peru"). CC0 (metadata); book content not read. openlibrary.org

Each numbered sentence above was checked against the source it cites before publication. Sentences citing Wikipedia adapt text from the English Wikipedia article Alpaca (contributors), used under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is available under the same licence. Other sources were used for facts only; no text or images are copied from them.

Related entries

Same family (Camelidae)

Bactrian camel Camelus bactrianusDromedary Camelus dromedarius

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Sources

Compiled from Wikipedia and the sources listed below. Text from Wikipedia is available under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is adapted from it.

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