Alpaca

The Alpaca (Vicugna pacos) is a domesticated breed of South American camel-like ungulates, derived from the wild vicuña. It resembles a sheep in appearance, but is larger and has a long erect neck. more...

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Alpacas are kept in herds that graze on the level heights of the Andes of southern Peru, northern Bolivia, and northern Chile at an altitude of 3500 to 5000 meters above sea-level, throughout the year. Alpacas are considerably smaller than llamas and unlike them are not used as beasts of burden but are valued only for their fiber (wool), used for making blankets and ponchos in South America, and sweaters, blankets, socks and coats in other parts of the world. The fiber comes in more than 22 natural colours.

In the textile industry, "alpaca" primarily refers to the hair of Peruvian alpaca, but more broadly it refers to a style of fabric originally made from alpaca hair but now often made from similar fibers, such as mohair, Icelandic sheep wool, or even high-quality English wool. In trade, distinctions are made between alpacas and the several styles of mohair and lustre. However, as far as the general purchaser is concerned, little or no distinction is made.

Background

Alpacas have been domesticated for thousands of years. There are no wild alpacas; they were bred down in domesticated form from the vicuña, which is also native to South America. They are closely related to llamas, which are descended from the guanaco. These four species of animals are collectively called camelids.

Of the four, the alpaca and the 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 cannot carry pack loads like their llama cousins; they were bred exclusively for their fiber and meat.

Alpacas and llamas can (and do) successfully cross-breed. The resulting offspring are called huarizo, and have little "real purpose," but often have gentle temperaments and are suitable for pets.

There are two types of alpaca – Huacaya (with dense, crimpy sheep-like fiber) and Suri (with silky dreadlocks). Suri fiber is often preferred by spinners, because it is long and has a silky luster. Suris are much rarer than Huacayas, and are estimated to make up between 6 and 10% of the alpaca population. However, since its import into the United States through Bill Barnett, the Suri is growing substantially in number and color diversity. The Suri is thought to be rarer possibly because it is less hardy in the harsh South American mountain climates, as its fleece offers less insulation against the cold. The Suri fleece parts along the spine, exposing the animal to the cold, unlike the Huacaya fleece which provides excellent cover over the backbone. Hoffman ( page 279) states that the word suri comes from the rhea, a flightless ostrich-like bird from Patagonia. The fact that the name is shared with that of the bird supports the belief that suris developed in the lowlands and were forced to live in higher areas by the actions of the Spanish invaders. However there is little evidence of any sort on this topic, so suri origins can only be the subject of speculation.

Read more at Wikipedia.org