The guanaco ( Old guanicoe ) is a camelid native to South America. Its name is derived from the word Quechua South America huanaco (modern spelling wanaku ). Young Guanacos are called chulengos .
Video Guanaco
Population and distribution
Guanacos inhabits the plains of Pampas and the mountains of South America. They are found in altiplano Peru, Bolivia and Chile, and in Patagonia, with a small population in Paraguay. In Argentina and Chile, they are mostly in the Patagonian area, as well as in places like Torres del Paine National Park, and Isla Grande de Tierra del Fuego. In these areas, they have a stronger population, because the ranching competition from the farm is limited. Estimates, in 2011, put their figures at 400,000 to 600,000. The small population introduced was on Staats Island in the Falkland Islands, with a population of about 400 in 2003.
Guanacos live in groups of women, their children, and dominant men. Male scholars form a separate herd. While reproductive groups tend to remain small, often containing no more than 10 adults, bachelor flocks can contain as many as 50 males. When they feel threatened, guanacos warns herds of cattle to escape with high-pitched calls. Men usually run behind a herd to defend them. They can run at 56 km (35 mi) per hour, often over steep and rocky terrain. They are also incredible swimmers. Guanaco typical life span is 20 to 25 years.
Atacama Desert
Some guanacos live in the Atacama Desert, where in some areas it has not rained for more than 50 years. The parallel mountainous coastline with deserts allows them to survive in so-called "mist mist" or lomas. Where cold water touches a warmer land, the air above the desert is cooled, creating a mist and thus, water vapor. The wind brings fog across the desert, where the cactus catches the water droplets and the lichen liches attached to the cactus soak it like a sponge. Guanacos then eat cactus flowers and lichen crust.
Maps Guanaco
Ecology
Natural guanaco predators include puma and foxes. Guanacos often spit when threatened.
Wedding season
The marriage season occurs between November and February, where men often fight hard to establish dominance and breeding rights. Eleven and a half months later, a single chulengo was born. Chulengos can run immediately after birth. Male chulengos are pursued from herd by dominant men around the age of one year.
Domestication
Although this species is still considered wild, about 300 guanacos are in the US zoo and about 200 are registered in private groups. Guanacos is the parent species of the pet llama.
Subspecies
- Old guanicoe guanicoe
- Old guanicoe cacsilensis
- Old guanicoe voglii
- Old guanicoe huanacus
Characteristics
Guanaco stands between 1.0 and 1.2 m (3 ft 3 in and 3 ft. 11 in) on the shoulders, and weighs 90-140 kg (200 to 310 pounds). The colors vary very little (unlike the domestic llama), ranging from cinnamon to dark brown and shading to white underneath. Guanacos has a gray and small face, straight ears.
Guanacos is one of the largest wild mammal species found in South America, along with the manatees, the Amazon river dolphins, tapirs, and jaguars.
Guanaco has a thick skin around his neck, a trait that is also found in his domestic counterparts, llama and in his relatives, wild algae and alpaka pets. It protects its neck from predatory attacks. The Bolivians use this animal's neck skin to make shoes, flatten and mash the skin to be used for sol. In Chile, hunting is only allowed in Tierra del Fuego, where the only population that is not classified as endangered in the country is located. Between 2007 and 2012, 13,200 guanacos were hunted legally in Tierra del Fuego.
Level of hemoglobin
Guanacos are often found at altitudes, up to 4,000 meters above sea level, except in Patagonia, where southern latitudes mean ice covers vegetation at this altitude. For guanacos to survive in the low oxygen levels found at these altitudes, their blood is rich in red blood cells. One teaspoon of guanaco blood contains about 68 billion red blood cells - four times that of humans.
Guanaco fiber
Guanaco fiber is very valuable because it is soft, warm and found in luxurious fabrics. The guanaco soft wool is worth a second after belonging to a vicuÃÆ' Â ± a. Fur, especially from calves, is sometimes used as a substitute for red foxes, because the texture is difficult to distinguish. Like their domestic descendants, llama, a double guanaco coated with coarse guard hair and a soft undercoat, whose hair is 16-18 Ã,Âμ in diameter and comparable to the finest cashmere.
References
External links
Source of the article : Wikipedia
0 Comments