General Lama Information

This Section Written By:

Sharon E. DaDalt
Llama Lledge Farm
Email: website AT nhlama.org
(copy email into mail program, change AT to @, and remove all spaces)

ORIGIN

Photo By: S. E. DaDalt
Beanie, a pet llama owned by Alicia Bentley

The lama is an animal that is native to South America. “Lama” is the genus name for the animal comprising four different species: llama, alpaca, guanaco, and vicuña. Another term for these four species is “lamoid”. It is believed that the llama was domesticated from the wild guanaco for use as a pack animal (can carry 80-100 pounds when in shape) and that the alpaca was domesticated from the wild vicuña as use as a fiber-producing animal. These four species are very similar and can still interbreed. Both the llama and alpaca are used for meat in South America. There are still guanacos and vicuñas in the wild, although the vicuña has been on the endangered species list due to hunting the animal for its fiber.

Photo By: J. Rice
Camels Are Fun!

Lamas originated in North America about 9-11 million years ago and subsequently traveled to South America and Asia. The lama in Asia became the dromedary and bactrian camels, the lama in South America became the guanaco and vicuña, as well as the domestic llama and alpaca. “Camelid” is the term used when talking about the four species of lamas as well as the two species of camels. Lamas died out in North America about 10,000-12,000 years ago.

REPRODUCTION

Photo By: J. Rice
Llamas that are breeding

The gestation period of a lama is approximately 11.5 months in length. Lama females do not go into heat, they are induced ovulators, that is, the male will mate with a female and 24-36 hours later she will ovulate (produce an egg) that is then available to be fertilized. The males make a sound called “orgling” during the mating process, which can last 15 minutes to an hour. Females can be bred as early as 6 months of age, although it is recommended that they not be bred before they are a year old. Males can breed at about 1.5-2.0 years of age.

Once a youngster is born, he/she is up and around within a half hour. The young lama is called a “cria”. The cria begins looking for mother’s milk almost immediately. The first milk of a mother is called “colostrum” and is produced for the first 24 hours of a cria’s life. Colostrum contains all the antibodies the cria will need to fight germs and infection during the first few months of life. The cria must ingest the colostrum during the first 24 hours of life as his intestines lose the ability to absorb the antibodies after this time.

FEEDING

Llama grain can be purchased by major feed stores

Llamas are both browsers and grazers, they love to nibble on trees as well as pasture. They seem to enjoy pine trees and oak trees. Alpacas tend to just be grazers. Lamas need fresh water daily. In South America, they get a lot of their moisture from the grass they ingest. In North America, we usually feed them grain along with hay and provide a loose mineral/salt supplement. Lamas will often eat carrots, apples, cabbage, cauliflower, and broccoli as treats.

ANATOMY

Photo By: J. Rice
A llama that is chewing her cud

Lamas are cud chewers, having a 3-chambered stomach. They have 6 incisor teeth on the bottom jaw in front and a hard dental pad on top. In the back of their mouth, they have 2 premolars and 3 molars on each side of their jaw, both on top and on the bottom, for a total of 12 molars and 8 premolars. When males reach about 2 years of age, they develop 6 fighting teeth (sharp canines) which they will use to go after any male that threatens their territory. The females also develop fighting teeth, but at a much later time, about 5-6 years of age. Lamas lose their deciduous teeth (milk teeth) at about 2 years of age.

A lama has a two-toed foot with a leathery pad on the bottom and a hard toenail on top. This enables them to be very sure-footed in the mountainous regions of South America. Their upper lip is split, enabling them to use it as we use our fingers, to grab food and manipulate it into their mouths.

When full grown, llamas can weigh 300-500 pounds and alpacas can average 130 pounds. Baby llamas weigh 20-35 pounds, and baby alpacas weigh 10-18 pounds. Alpacas come in two varieties, Suri and Huacaya, which is designated by their wool type. The life span of these animals is from 20-25 years.

GENERAL BEHAVIOR

Photo By: J. Rice
Vans are often used to transport llamas

Lamas are very intelligent animals and have an excellent memory. They will often learn a task in 2-5 repetitions and will remember it forever, even if not reinforced. They can be taught to kush (sit down) on command, load into a vehicle, ride up and down elevators, carry a pack, drive a cart, or be ridden (by children only). They will learn their name and some general commands. Lamas do spit, generally at each other at food time. A properly raised lama will not spit at people. Lamas use a common dung pile, however, the males will often establish several to mark out their territory. Lamas communicate through voice (humming, orgling, alarm cry), and the position of their tails, neck, and ears. They are very curious animals. Lamas are very gentle, even breeding males are not dangerous around small children! Female lamas have a pecking order within the herd, with one female being dominant.

MALE BEHAVIOR

Photo By: J. Rice
Males are territorial and will fight with each other

In the wild, a male becomes territorial once he reaches maturity (about 4-5 years of age) and stakes out his territory. Females join his herd and breed with him. He chases all predators out of his territory. When the young in the herd are around 8 months of age, he will also drive them out of the herd (this prevents inbreeding). It is common to see young males (as young as a week in age) play breeding and fighting. The behavior is there from birth. The fighting does not become dangerous until the male gets in his fighting teeth. Then, he can do damage to another male!

WHERE ARE THEY FOUND

As well as in South America, lamas are found in every state of the United States. They are also kept in many countries, such as Canada and Australia. They adapt well to almost any climate. As they are a cold weather animal, sometimes it is necessary to shear them when kept in a hot area, such as Florida.

Photo By: S. E. DaDalt
Beanie, a pet llama owned by Alicia Bentley

SCIENTIFIC CLASSIFICATION

Classification of the South American Camelids
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Mammalia
Order:	Artiodactyla
Suborder:	Tylopoda
Family:	Camelidae
Llama
Genus:	Lama
Species:	glama
Alpaca
Genus:	Lama
Species:	pacos
Guanaco
Genus:	Lama
Species:	guanicoe
Vicuña
Genus:	Lama
Species:	vicugna

 

Classification of the Camels
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Mammalia
Order:	Artiodactyla
Suborder:	Tylopoda
Family:	Camelidae
Dromedary Camel (one hump)
Genus:	Camelus
Species:	dromedarius
Bactrian Camel (two humps)
Genus:	Camelus
Species:	bactrianus