The Llama

It may seem odd but one of the animals that is part of Christmas is not one that was found at the manger scene or a reindeer. The Llama is the hump-less relative of the camel and is a popular piece in Christmas festivities.

The llama is a domesticated animal originating from South America. Raised to be both a pack animal as well as for its meat by the Andean cultures since the Pre-Columbian era.

Llamas normally are around 5.6-5.9 feet tall from head to hoof. They can weigh between 290 and 440 lbs.  That is a long way from their birth weight at around 20 t0 30 lbs. Their wool is very soft and lanolin free. A life line of around 20 years with some living as long as 30 years.

Llamas live in herds and are very sociable. Their intelligence can be shown as they are able to learn simple tasks after just a few tries.

Llamas may have originated in the central plains of North America about 40 million years ago. From their they migrated to South America about 3 million years ago At the end of the last ice age about 10,000 years ago they may have been extinct in North America. Today there are over 158,000 llamas and 100,000 alpacas in the United States and Canada.

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