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very morning, I’ve woken up not knowing the difference between a llama and an alpaca.
Is it just me?
One particular morning, I woke up and it was like every other day. But when I went to bed that night, I wasn’t the same girl who’d left that bed in the morning.
Because finally, I went to bed knowing the difference.
No more sleepless nights of tossing and turning as alpacas, vicuñas, laminoids, llamas, guanacos, camels, and camelids danced into my confused, unsleeping mind.
The matter was finally put to rest and for once, I could sleep in peace.
Okay, maybe I’m exaggerating but it’s true that if you asked me that morning to distinguish a llama from an alpaca, I wouldn’t have had a clue. So it felt good at the end of the day knowing I’d learned something new.
Because finally, I got to see one of these animals in real-life. In fact, I saw an entire farm of them!
A farm of what???
Well, I’ll let you guess from the pictures!
Recently, we visited a farm owned by one of the clients for my dad’s work. The owners were incredibly kind in allowing us to visit their beautiful animals. They taught us about the animals and the husbandry practices that go on at this unique farm. I am grateful to the generous couple for letting me spend time with these amazing animals…
Llama? Alpaca?
Can you guess which animal?
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| All eyes to the front of the class, please. |
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| A yawn, burp, yodel - who knows! (Hint: she's yawning) |
So, what do you think?
Answer: They’re alpacas!
Thank you to the wonderful couple for showing me their beautiful, happy, healthy alpacas. I learnt quite a lot just by standing in the pen, being surrounded by these creatures (and many curious pairs of eyes!). The alpacas didn’t let me pat them, yet strangely, I felt very much at home amongst these animals. So thank you!
Now let’s clear the confusion…
These gorgeous animals are alpacas. Alpacas are smaller than llamas. Alpacas and llamas are domesticated animals, whereas vicuñas and guanacos are wild, not domesticated.
The scientific name for llamas is Lama glama which is so cute, don’t you think?
Guanacos are believed to be the ancestors of llamas and alpacas.
Camelids are all the species in the family Camelidae which include alpacas, llamas, vicuñas, guanacos, and camels.
Laminoids are all the species of the tribe Lamini which belongs to the subfamily Camelinae which belongs to the family Camelidae. Laminoids include alpacas, llamas, vicuñas, and guanacos.
Lastly, camels have humps.
Hope it hasn’t left you more confused!
So there, the matter is settled. Now we can all get a good night’s sleep!
Love, Young and Unheroic
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