Llama Lovelies

I am now back home again and have a lot of photos to sort through and video to upload.  I spent 3 very enjoyable birding days with Eileen during my week on the I.O.W.  During the first day, we came upon these 4 Llamas in a field and of course I had to stop and get a few shots!  They were very friendly and ran over to see me.  I was able to feed them green juicy grass.  I will tell you a few things about them between the photographs.

 

Llamas have an unusual reproductive cycle for a large animal. Female llamas are induced ovulators.  Through the act of mating, the female releases an egg and is often fertilised on the first attempt.  Female llamas do not go into estrus ("heat")

Like humans, llama males and females mature sexually at different rates. Females reach puberty at about 12 months old; males do not become sexually mature until around three years of age.

 

Mating

Llamas mate with the female in a kush (lying down) position, which is fairly unusual in a large animal. They mate for an extended period of time (20–45 minutes), also unusual in a large animal.

 

Gestation

The gestation period of a llama is (350 days). Dams (female llamas) do not lick off their babies, as they have an attached tongue which does not reach outside of the mouth more than half an inch (1.3 cm). Rather, they will nuzzle and hum to their newborns.

Crias

A cria (from Spanish for "baby") is the name for a baby llama, alpaca, vicuña, or guanaco. Crias are typically born with all the females of the herd gathering around, in an attempt to protect against the male llamas and potential predators. Llamas give birth standing. Birth is usually quick and problem-free, over in less than 30 minutes. Most births take place between 8 am and noon, during the warmer daylight hours. This may increase cria survival by reducing fatalities due to hypothermia during cold Andean nights.

 

 

 

Llamas which are well-socialised and trained to halter and lead after weaning are very friendly and pleasant to be around. They are extremely curious and most will approach people easily. However, llamas that are bottle-fed or over-socialised and over-handled as youth will become extremely difficult to handle when mature, when they will begin to treat humans as they treat each other, which is characterised by bouts of spitting, kicking and neck wrestling. Anyone having to bottle-feed a cria should keep contact to a minimum and stop as soon as possible.

 

  When correctly reared, llamas spitting at a human is a rare thing. Llamas are very social herd animals, however, and do sometimes spit at each other as a way of disciplining lower-ranked llamas in the herd. A llama's social rank in a herd is never static.  While the social structure might always be changing, they live as a family and they do take care of each other. If one notices a strange noise or feels threatened, a warning bray is sent out and all others become alert. They will often hum to each other as a form of communication.

 

An "orgle" is the mating sound of a llama or alpaca, made by the sexually aroused male. The sound is reminiscent of gargling, but with a more forceful, buzzing edge. Males begin the sound when they become aroused and continue throughout the act of procreation – from 15 minutes to more than an hour.

 

I hope you enjoyed this different post.

 

Many thanks for visiting and also for commenting on any of my posts.