50 Fascinating Alpaca Facts

Alpacas are full of surprises. Here are 50 facts — grouped by theme — that alpaca owners love to share.

Origins and history

1. Alpacas were domesticated about 6,000–7,000 years ago in the Andes.
2. Their wild ancestor is the vicuña; llamas descend from the guanaco.
3. Camelids originated in North America around 45 million years ago before spreading to South America and Asia.
4. Alpacas and camels are cousins — both belong to the family Camelidae.
5. The Inca prized fine alpaca and vicuña cloth so much that it was used like currency and reserved for nobility.
6. After the Spanish conquest, alpacas were pushed into the highest, harshest terrain, which helped them survive while many herds were lost.
7. Well over three-quarters of all alpacas live in Peru.
8. Alpacas were first imported to the United States in 1984.

Bodies and biology

9. Adults stand about 3 feet (90 cm) at the shoulder and weigh 106–190 lb.
10. Alpacas have no upper front teeth — they bite grass between lower incisors and a hard dental pad.
11. Males grow sharp “fighting teeth” around 2–3 years old.
12. They have a three-compartment stomach and chew cud.
13. Their padded, two-toed feet are gentle on pasture compared with hooves.
14. Camelid red blood cells are oval, unlike those of other mammals, an adaptation thought to help with altitude and dehydration.
15. A healthy adult’s temperature is about 99.5–101.8°F (37.5–38.8°C).
16. Alpacas typically live 15–20 years.
17. Females are induced ovulators: they ovulate in response to mating, so they can be bred at any time of year.
18. Pregnancy lasts around 335 days — about 11.5 months.
19. Twins are extremely rare.
20. Baby alpacas are called crias.
21. Most crias are born between mid-morning and early afternoon, an adaptation to cold Andean nights.
22. Crias usually stand within an hour of birth.
23. A newborn cria weighs about 15–19 lb.

Behavior

24. Alpacas are herd animals and become seriously stressed if kept alone.
25. Their everyday “voice” is a soft hum.
26. They give a loud, braying alarm call when they spot danger.
27. Males make a gargling sound called orgling while mating.
28. Alpacas use communal dung piles, which makes cleanup easy and keeps pastures cleaner.
29. They spit mainly at each other — over food or unwanted advances — not usually at people.
30. Pregnant females often spit at males to reject them; breeders use this as a pregnancy test.
31. Alpacas love to roll in dust and sunbathe stretched out on their sides.
32. They recognize individual people and herd mates and learn routines quickly.

Fiber

33. Alpaca fiber contains no lanolin, so it needs less harsh scouring and suits many people who react to wool.
34. Alpaca is warmer than sheep’s wool for its weight.
35. There are two fleece types: fluffy huacaya and silky suri.
36. Alpacas come in more than 20 natural colors, from white to true black.
37. Each alpaca produces about 5–10 lb of fleece a year.
38. “Baby alpaca” refers to fine fiber (about 22.5 microns or less), not to fiber from babies.
39. The finest commercial grade, royal alpaca, measures around 19 microns or less.
40. Alpacas must be shorn every year — they don’t shed.
41. Vicuña, the alpaca’s wild ancestor, grows the finest animal fiber in the world (about 12–14 microns).

Farming and people

42. A common guideline is 5–10 alpacas per acre of good pasture.
43. Alpacas eat roughly 1.5–2% of their body weight in dry matter every day.
44. Their manure, called “beans”, can often go straight onto the garden.
45. Dogs — including pet dogs — are the biggest predator threat to alpacas outside South America.
46. Alpacas are popular therapy animals in schools and care homes.
47. Alpacas have helped medicine: their nanobodies (tiny antibodies) are widely used in research.
48. Alpaca meat is a traditional, lean protein in the Andes.
49. Alpacas are not endangered; there are several million worldwide.
50. Alpaca fiber grades and colors make them the most color-diverse fiber animal on Earth.

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