What are Alpacas?

Alpacas are members of the Camelid family, which includes the domesticated Camel and Llama and the wild and lesser well known Vicuna and Guanaco, which are protected species. Alpacas were domesticated from the wild vicuna into alpaca six to seven thousand years ago. The Incas were very successful in further refining the alpaca for better fibre quality. When the Spanish invaded Peru in 1532, they destroyed the breeding programs and the alpacas were decimated in numbers and quality in favour of sheep.

All four species are found mainly in Peru in the Andes, with smaller numbers in Chile and Bolivia. They have since been imported into the USA, Canada, mainland Europe, Australia, New Zealand and other parts of the world. There are two breeds of Alpaca, the Huacaya and Suri. The more common is the Huacaya, characterised by their thick dense fleece which has a crimped appearance. The Suris are characterised by a more silky fibre fleece that hangs in long, separate, ringlets. A ‘magic suri’ is one that has never been sheared and its coat reaches the ground.

There are now thought to be about 3.5 million alpacas in South America and they are now being successfully bred in North America, Australia, Britain and Europe. Alpacas come in 22 basic colours including whites, fawns, browns, blacks and greys. Alpacas live in the region of 15-20 years, have a gestation period of between 11 – 12 months. Baby Alpacas are known as cria.