Guanaco: Difference between revisions
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Guanacos have thick skin on their neck, a trait also found in their domestic counterparts, the [[llama]] and in their relatives, the wild [[vicuña]] and domesticated [[alpaca]]. This protects their neck from predator attacks. Bolivians use the neck-skin of these animals to make [[shoe]]s, flattening and pounding the skin to be used for the soles. In Chile, hunting is allowed only in [[Tierra del Fuego]], where the only population not classified as endangered in the country resides. Between 2007 and 2012, 13,200 guanacos were legally hunted in Tierra del Fuego.<ref>Servicio Agrícola y Ganadero, 2012. Plan de Manejo para a población de guanacos en el área agropecuaria de Tierra del Fuego (Chile). Servicio Agrícola y Ganadero, Gobierno de Chile. Punta Arenas, 47pp.+Annexes.</ref> |
Guanacos have thick skin on their neck, a trait also found in their domestic counterparts, the [[llama]] and in their relatives, the wild [[vicuña]] and domesticated [[alpaca]]. This protects their neck from predator attacks. Bolivians use the neck-skin of these animals to make [[shoe]]s, flattening and pounding the skin to be used for the soles. In Chile, hunting is allowed only in [[Tierra del Fuego]], where the only population not classified as endangered in the country resides. Between 2007 and 2012, 13,200 guanacos were legally hunted in Tierra del Fuego.<ref>Servicio Agrícola y Ganadero, 2012. Plan de Manejo para a población de guanacos en el área agropecuaria de Tierra del Fuego (Chile). Servicio Agrícola y Ganadero, Gobierno de Chile. Punta Arenas, 47pp.+Annexes.</ref> |
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== Behaviour == |
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| ⚫ | The guanaco is a diurnal animal. It lives in small herds consisting of one male and several females with their young. When the male detects danger, he warns the group by bleating. The guanaco can run up to 64 km/h. This speed is important for the survival of guanacos because they cannot easily hide in the open grasslands of the Altiplano.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Guanaco {{!}} San Diego Zoo Animals & Plants|url=https://animals.sandiegozoo.org/index.php/animals/guanaco|access-date=2022-01-05|website=animals.sandiegozoo.org}}</ref> |
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Guanaco babies are also called chulengos and can walk soon after birth. The guanaco is also a good swimmer and can cross mountain streams. Its main predator is the puma. Another occasional predator is the [[culpeo]] or red fox. It has a considerable body size to hunt young and even adolescents. <ref>{{Cite web|title=The Guanaco - World's Finest Wool|url=https://www.worlds-finest-wool.com/the-guanaco/|access-date=2022-01-05|website=www.worlds-finest-wool.com|language=en-US}}</ref> |
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This behaviour was unknown until 2007 when predators began to be observed in the Karukinka Reserve in Tierra del Fuego. Scientists attribute the reason for the alleged new predation to the unfavourable climatic conditions on the island, which are causing food to become scarce, weakening the animals. The absence of pumas on Tierra del Fuego is also believed to be a factor that allows the fox to occupy its ecological niche. Finally, it is believed that this behaviour is not new, as the fox is nocturnal, which allows it to capture most of its prey, but makes it challenging to observe. |
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| ⚫ | Faced with the threat of the red fox, guanacos resort to cooperative strategies to protect their young with a shield formation, a circle around the vulnerable. If they are successful, they chase the fox away, which would be impossible with a puma.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Balboa|first=Perla Cecilia Rodriguez|last2=Rodriguez|first2=Humberto Gonzalez|last3=Silva|first3=Israel Cantu|last4=Parra|first4=Artemio Carrillo|last5=Lozano|first5=Roque G. Ramirez|date=2016-04-07|title=Leaf Morphological Traits of then Shrub Species at the Tamaulipan Thorn Scrub|url=http://dx.doi.org/10.23910/ijbsm/2016.7.2.1494b|journal=International Journal of Bio-resource and Stress Management|volume=7|issue=2|pages=344–349|doi=10.23910/ijbsm/2016.7.2.1494b|issn=0976-3988}}</ref> |
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Living in a group is an essential strategy against predators. Due to the dilution and early detection effect, guanacos living in groups spend less guarding and more time foraging than guanacos living alone. |
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=== Food === |
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They feed on grasses, moss and tubers.9 Guanacos are known to spit out both saliva and grasses that they chew. Their split upper lip acts as a finger to facilitate the eating process. The guanaco has a specialized digestive system and can therefore eat many types of food and absorb most nutrients from plants. Therefore, it does not need to drink water as it absorbs enough through its food. |
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=== Hemoglobin levels === |
=== Hemoglobin levels === |
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== Ecology == |
== Ecology == |
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| ⚫ | The guanaco is a diurnal animal. It lives in small herds consisting of one male and several females with their young. When the male detects danger, he warns the group by bleating. The guanaco can run up to 64 km/h. This speed is important for the survival of guanacos because they cannot easily hide in the open grasslands of the Altiplano.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Guanaco {{!}} San Diego Zoo Animals & Plants|url=https://animals.sandiegozoo.org/index.php/animals/guanaco|access-date=2022-01-05|website=animals.sandiegozoo.org}}</ref> |
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| ⚫ | Natural predators of the guanaco include [[South American cougar|puma]]s and the [[culpeo]] or Andean fox.<ref name="SDZ"/> Fox predation was unknown until 2007 when predators began to be observed in the Karukinka Reserve in Tierra del Fuego. Scientists attribute the reason for the alleged new predation to the unfavourable climatic conditions on the island, which are causing food to become scarce, weakening the animals. The absence of pumas on Tierra del Fuego is also believed to be a factor that allows the fox to occupy its ecological niche. Finally, it is believed that this behaviour is not new, as the fox is nocturnal, which allows it to capture most of its prey, but makes it challenging to observe. Faced with the threat of the red fox, guanacos resort to cooperative strategies to protect their young with a shield formation, a circle around the vulnerable. If they are successful, they chase the fox away, which would be impossible with a puma.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Balboa|first=Perla Cecilia Rodriguez|last2=Rodriguez|first2=Humberto Gonzalez|last3=Silva|first3=Israel Cantu|last4=Parra|first4=Artemio Carrillo|last5=Lozano|first5=Roque G. Ramirez|date=2016-04-07|title=Leaf Morphological Traits of then Shrub Species at the Tamaulipan Thorn Scrub|url=http://dx.doi.org/10.23910/ijbsm/2016.7.2.1494b|journal=International Journal of Bio-resource and Stress Management|volume=7|issue=2|pages=344–349|doi=10.23910/ijbsm/2016.7.2.1494b|issn=0976-3988}}</ref> |
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| ⚫ | When threatened, the guanaco alerts the rest of the herd with a high-pitched bleating sound, which sounds similar to a short, sharp laugh. Though typically mild-mannered, guanacos often spit when threatened, and can do so up to a distance of six feet.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.cascada.travel/en/News/5-Fascinating-Facts-About-Guanacos|title=5 Fascinating Facts About Guanacos » Cascada Expediciones|website=www.cascada.travel|access-date=2019-06-12}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=http://kids.nationalgeographic.com/Animals/CreatureFeature/Guanaco|title=National Geographic}}</ref> |
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=== Mating season === |
=== Mating season === |
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[[Image:Herd of guanacos.jpg|thumb|A herd of guanacos at the [[Chester Zoo]]]] |
[[Image:Herd of guanacos.jpg|thumb|A herd of guanacos at the [[Chester Zoo]]]] |
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Although the species is still considered wild, around 300 guanacos are in U.S. zoos, and around 200 are registered in private herds.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.onramp113.com/royalfibers/guanfaq.htm|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120425141845/http://www.onramp113.com/royalfibers/guanfaq.htm|title=ROYAL FIBERS - Guanacos Facts|archive-date=25 April 2012|access-date=17 March 2015}}</ref> Guanacos have long been thought to be the parent species of the domesticated [[llama]], which was confirmed via [[molecular phylogenetic]] analysis in 2001, although the analysis also found that domestic llamas had experienced considerable cross-hybridization with [[alpaca]]s, which are descended from the wild [[vicuña]].<ref name=wheeler>{{cite journal | first1 =Dr Jane | last1 =Wheeler | first2=Miranda | last2 = Kadwell |first3=Matilde | last3 = Fernandez |first4=Helen F. | last4 = Stanley |first5=Ricardo | last5 = Baldi |first6=Raul | last6 = Rosadio |first7=Michael W. | last7 = Bruford |date=December 2001 | title =Genetic analysis reveals the wild ancestors of the llama and the alpaca | journal =Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences | volume =268 | issue =1485 | pages =2575–2584 | id= 0962-8452 (Paper), 1471-2954 (Online) | doi = 10.1098/rspb.2001.1774 | pmid =11749713 | pmc =1088918 }}</ref> |
Although the species is still considered wild, around 300 guanacos are in U.S. zoos, and around 200 are registered in private herds.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.onramp113.com/royalfibers/guanfaq.htm|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120425141845/http://www.onramp113.com/royalfibers/guanfaq.htm|title=ROYAL FIBERS - Guanacos Facts|archive-date=25 April 2012|access-date=17 March 2015}}</ref> Guanacos have long been thought to be the parent species of the domesticated [[llama]], which was confirmed via [[molecular phylogenetic]] analysis in 2001, although the analysis also found that domestic llamas had experienced considerable cross-hybridization with [[alpaca]]s, which are descended from the wild [[vicuña]].<ref name=wheeler>{{cite journal | first1 =Dr Jane | last1 =Wheeler | first2=Miranda | last2 = Kadwell |first3=Matilde | last3 = Fernandez |first4=Helen F. | last4 = Stanley |first5=Ricardo | last5 = Baldi |first6=Raul | last6 = Rosadio |first7=Michael W. | last7 = Bruford |date=December 2001 | title =Genetic analysis reveals the wild ancestors of the llama and the alpaca | journal =Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences | volume =268 | issue =1485 | pages =2575–2584 | id= 0962-8452 (Paper), 1471-2954 (Online) | doi = 10.1098/rspb.2001.1774 | pmid =11749713 | pmc =1088918 }}</ref> |
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== See also == |
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* [[Camel]] |
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{{Clear}} |
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== References == |
== References == |
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