Vicuña
Taxonomy
- Phylum: Chordata – Chordate
- Class: Mammalia – Mammals
- Order: Artiodactyla – Even-toed ungulates
- Family: Camelidae – Camels
- Species: Vicugna vicugna – vicuna
Conservation
Distribution and habitat
Vicuna is found in South America, specifically Puna and the High Andean ecosystems, however over half of the total world’s population of vicuna live in Perú. Vicuna is a high-altitude ungulate.
Vicunas’ daily activity patterns and movements are also strongly influenced by water availability, especially during the summer. In the night and early morning vicunas move to hillsides to avoid predation from pumas and foxes.
Adaptions
The vicuna is the smallest of the South American camelids. Their height ranges from 1.45 to 1.60 m, the shoulder height from 75 to 85 cm and the weight from 35 to 65 kg.
Vicunas are specially adapted to their high-altitude habitats. Their thick, soft fur traps layers of warm air close to their bodies, protecting them from low temperatures. Vicunas walk on the soles of their feet, so that they can flex their toes and cling to gravel-covered rocks and slopes.
Living in open areas, the long neck allows it to detect the presence of predators from a distance.
Diet
The vicuna is a generalist herbivore that behaves as a facultative grazer that can also include shrubs in its diet.
The vicuna’s lower teeth are constantly growing so that they can eat tough grasses. They also chew their cud when resting to extract more nutrients from the grass.
Breeding
Vicunas are polygamous – they do not make stable pairs for breeding and care for the babies. Typically, vicunas make a group consisting of one male, two to fifteen females, and their offspring. Females are attracted to a feeding area monopolized by a territorial male. Females remain primarily within the territory, although in some populations there is movement between different social units, resulting in variable social organization.
Pregnancy lasts about 11 months. Vicunas are born in late summer, when there is the most amount of food in steppe. Females breed again about two weeks later.
Vicunas feed their young with milk for around 8 months. Milk is very rich in nutrients, so the cubs grow quickly. Offspring are forcibly dispersed from their family group by the male before the next breeding season. Females move to new groups and males that cannot guard their own territory yet create bachelor groups.
Conservation and threats
Poaching triggered by international illegal market demands of vicuna fibre continues to be the major threat to the species.
Other significant threats are urbanization of their habitat, intensive tourism and agriculture.
References:
Arzamendia, Y., Carbajo, A. E., & Vilá, B. (2018). Social group dynamics and composition of managed wild vicuñas (Vicugna vicugna vicugna) in Jujuy, Argentina. Journal of Ethology, 36(2), 125-134.
Bonacic, C., Macdonald, D. W., Galaz, J., & Sibly, R. M. (2002). Density dependence in the camelid Vicugna vicugna: the recovery of a protected population in Chile. Oryx, 36(2), 118-125.
Borgnia, M., Vilá, B. L., & Cassini, M. H. (2008). Interaction between wild camelids and livestock in an Andean semi-desert. Journal of Arid Environments, 72(12), 2150-2158.
Franklin, W.L. 2011. Family Camelidae (camels). In: Wilson, D.E. and Mittermeier, R.A. (eds), Handbook of the mammals of the world. Vol. 2. Hoofed mammals, pp. 206–246. Lynx editions, Barcelona.
Mata, C., Malo, J. E., Galaz, J. L., Cadorzo, C., & Lagunas, H. (2016). A three-step approach to minimise the impact of a mining site on vicuña (Vicugna vicugna) and to restore landscape connectivity. Environmental Science and Pollution Research, 23, 13626-13636.
South American Camelid Specialist Group – IUCN. 2014. Poaching of Vicuña and the Illegal Commercialization of its Fiber: A Persisting Problem. IUCN.
Wheeler, J. C. (2012). South American camelids-past, present and future.
IUCN https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/22956/145360542
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