Vicuña

Lama vicugna

Status: Least Concern. Vicunas are a conservation success story. In 1974 vicuna were declared endangered. They are the wild ancestors of domestic alpacas, and were hunted to near extinction for their highly prized fleece. Their wool is golden, fine, and excellent at insulating air to provide warmth. In ancient Incan times, the common people wore fabric spun from llama wool, nobles and officers wore alpaca, and the finest threads of vicuna were reserved for use by royalty. Killing a vicuna, or wearing its wool outside of royalty was forbidden, and the wild herds were carefully safeguarded. Only the Virgins of the Sun (young unmarried women who were dedicated to serving the sun god) were allowed to spin and weave the wool, and they produced the fine textiles that were used to create silky garments that were dyed in brilliant colors.

When the Spanish came to the region, rather than shearing the vicuna for the wool, they saw the exotic creatures as quick and easy plunder, both for meat and the hides. Vicuna were hunted and killed to take the entire pelt, and over time their numbers dropped to only 6000 individuals.

Conservation efforts reined in unrestricted over-exploitation and today their population is 350,000, though it still requires oversight to ensure they are protected from poaching, and have adequate wild habitat to thrive. The annual celebration of the chaccu, a ceremonial hunt) is a sacred tradition that goes back to pre-Incan times. Now in modern times, Andean communities festively participate in gathering the wild herds to ethically shear and release. The local communities take part in the stewardship of the vicuna, and in return they are able to reap the economic benefits and meet the commercial demand for the fiber so that black market poaching does not reignite a collapse in the populations.

Pachamama (Mother Earth) and Coquena are two entities who protect vicuna and wild animals of the Andes (as opposed to the domesticated sheep and camelids). Coquena is described as a little man, and he watches over a herd of vicuna at night. Those who seek to kill the animals under his protection, without his permission and without paying the price, are punished. Pachamama is the spiritual protector of nature, providing fertility of the earth in return for respect, but also visiting vengeance with drought and and earthquake if the earth is not honored.

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