{"id":23416,"date":"2020-12-20T23:13:02","date_gmt":"2020-12-20T23:13:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/?p=23416"},"modified":"2020-12-21T12:56:18","modified_gmt":"2020-12-21T12:56:18","slug":"llamas-are-having-a-moment-in-the-us-but-theyve-been-icons-in-south-america-for-millennia","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/llamas-are-having-a-moment-in-the-us-but-theyve-been-icons-in-south-america-for-millennia\/","title":{"rendered":"Llamas are having a moment in the US, but they’ve been icons in South America for millennia"},"content":{"rendered":"

Emily Wakild<\/a>, Boise State University<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

With their long eyelashes, banana-shaped ears, upturned mouths and stocky bodies covered with curly wool, llamas look like creatures that walked out of a Dr. Seuss story. And now they\u2019re celebrities in the U.S.<\/p>\n

Because of their gentle and docile demeanor, llamas are often favorites at petting zoos. They appear at festivals and weddings and have even been deployed as therapy animals<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Llamas have also made medical news in 2020. Their immune systems produce nanobodies<\/a> \u2013 tiny antibody fragments much smaller than human antibodies \u2013 that have potential as COVID-19 treatments<\/a>. Scientists are also testing synthetic versions of llama nanobodies as technologies for treating diseases such as cystic fibrosis<\/a>.<\/p>\n

But there\u2019s much more to know about these engaging animals. In my work as a historian of Latin America<\/a>, I\u2019ve studied their long relationship with humans<\/a> in their Andean mountain homelands. These interactions have shaped everything about llamas, from the length and color of their wool to their dispositions and reproductive habits.<\/p>\n

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A camel lineage<\/h2>\n

Llamas are the descendants of animals known as wild guanaco<\/a>, which were domesticated in South America around 4500 B.C. Llamas and guanaco are two of four<\/a> South American members of the camel family<\/a>. The others are the alpaca<\/a> and the vicu\u00f1a<\/a>, a wild species renowned for its soft wool.<\/p>\n

Breeders regularly pair female llamas with male alpacas to create offspring endowed with fine, valuable alpaca wool. Male llamas are bred with female alpacas to increase the wool\u2019s weight.<\/p>\n

These animals were important to the economy of the Incan Empire, which flourished in Peru from about A.D. 1400 to 1533<\/a>. Incas used their wool to make fabric, which doubled as a form of currency. The animals also provided meat and carried goods<\/a> over some 25,000 miles of Inca roads.<\/p>\n

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Miniature gold llama figurine, Peru, Inca, about A.D. 1500, British Museum.<\/span>
\nBabelStone\/Wikipedia<\/a>, CC BY-SA<\/a><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

But the Incas didn\u2019t view llamas and their kin just as livestock. Rather, they were deeply woven into the region\u2019s culture and spiritual beliefs. Incas and pre-Incas sacrificed llamas and alpacas<\/a> in religious ceremonies to promote fertility in their herds. They served the animals\u2019 meat at state-sponsored celebrations<\/a> to honor rain gods. And they sacrificed and buried<\/a> these creatures on newly conquered lands to legitimize Inca presence.<\/p>\n

[Expertise in your inbox. Sign up for The Conversation\u2019s newsletter and get expert takes on today\u2019s news, every day.<\/a><\/em>]<\/p>\n

The finest wool<\/h2>\n

Archaeologists have unearthed mummified alpacas and llamas<\/a> in Peru that were more than a thousand years old. The animals had been sacrificed and buried with beads, wool and silver pieces.<\/p>\n

Analysis of these perfectly preserved specimens revealed their handlers\u2019 masterful selective breeding techniques. These animals had soft, wispy, quickly growing wool \u2013 finer than today\u2019s best cashmere. So what happened to the genes that produced such high-quality wool?<\/p>\n

They disappeared.<\/p>\n

After the Spanish took control of the Inca empire in the 1540s, Spanish rulers viewed llamas and alpacas as beasts of burden or sources of meat<\/a>. Many of the animals died from diseases introduced by the Spaniards\u2019 imported sheep and cattle. It took nearly 300 years for Peruvians to achieve independence, and longer for indigenous Andean peoples\u2019 population and traditional husbandry practices to resume.<\/p>\n

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Indigenous people still adorn their llamas, a tradition that dates back millennia.<\/span>
\nTydence Davis\/Flicker<\/a>, CC BY<\/a><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Llama dressing<\/h2>\n

Today it\u2019s not unusual to see llamas dressed in colorful costumes in public squares in Andean towns. This is a longstanding cultural tradition, symbolizing power, respect and reverence among indigenous people<\/a>, especially in Bolivia and Peru. For example, the Qhapaq Qolla dance<\/a>, celebrated each July in Paucartambo, Peru, recognizes llamas and their herders as powerful parts of an Andean \u201ccosmovision,\u201d or understanding of the universe.<\/p>\n

Andean cultures possess a holistic worldview<\/a> that encompasses humans, plants, animals, the land, rivers, mountains, rain, snow and, of course, llamas. Many Andeans associate animals with supernatural beings. Herders in Peru\u2019s Ayacucho region believe that their llama and alpaca flocks do not belong to them \u2013 they\u2019re the property of the \u201cwamani<\/a>\u201d \u2013 spirits that reside within waters or mountain peaks.<\/p>\n

They believe that llamas act as an essential conduit between people and the wamani, and herders maintain that connection through ritual obligations that often involve the animals. They may adorn llamas, dress up the animals or \u201cmarry\u201d llamas to each other on a wedding bed. Docile animals that cooperate in these ceremonies are kept around, reproducing longer and creating future generations with easygoing temperaments.<\/p>\n