Research Results - (PDF, 101 mb) - USAID

ute to the scarce supply of quality forage. Our
results demonstrate that South American
camelids have adapted by reducing intake and
decreasing the transit time of digesta through
the tract to enhance microbial attack of forages
high in structural carbohydrates. South American
camelids are physiologically adapted to
high altitudes and are a more appropriate
species to utilize the sparse and fibrous vegetation
in the ranges of the Altiplano.
Normal adult body weights for sheep,
alpacas, and llamas in the Peruvian Altiplano
are 40, 65, and 108 kg, respectively. For comparative
purposes, these values correspond to
15.9, 22.9, and 33.5 kg of metabolic weight (kg
WO'Th), respectively. Thus, respective alpaca and
llama metabolic weights are 1.4 and 2.1 times
that of sheep (1.0). Further, a llama's metabolic
weight is 1.5 times that of alpacas. Considering
a 30% lower intake in SAC than sheep, the
stocking ratio would be 1.0:1.0 for alpaca:sheep
(1.4x0.7) and 1.5:1.0 for llamas:sheep (2.1x0.7).
These alpaca:sheep and llama:sheep ratios are
quite different from published stocking ratios
which, without differentiation between alpacas
and llamas, indicate ratios from 1.5 to 1.8 per
sheep unit. It is important to note that these
ratios do not incorporate herbage and environmental
characteristics.
Project Achievements
Publication of research results in Applied
Animal Behaviorin 1989 (Pfister et al. 23:237-246)
and three abstracts and presentations. See
Publications.
Changes in 1990 Workplans
The SR-CRSP program was closed due to
security problems and will be moved to Bolivia.
2. Use of crop residues as supplemental
feed for alpacas and llamas.
Objective
To evaluate the potential of crop residues
as feed for camelids.
Problem Statement and Approach
Animals suffer from malnutrition. Byproducts
may be used to meet nutrient deficiencies.
Llamas, alpacas, and sheep were hand-fed
various crop by-products and digestible organic
matter and water consumption was determined,
along with the effect of processing oat straw on
dry matter consumption.
justification
Redirection of crop by-products to
camelids has not been explored.
Project Progress
and 5.
Relevant data are presented in tables 3, 4,
Table 3. Organic matter digestion (%)of crop
residues by llama, alpaca and sheep.
Crop residue Llama Alpaca Sheep
Avena sativa 68a 70a 62b
Vicia faba 59& 58a 561
Chenopodium quinoa 64a 62, 5 0 b
Greater digestion capability was observed
in South American camelids than sheep
for Avena and Chenopodium. This suggests that
llamas and alpacas could be supplied fodder
from these plants to provide an adequate
supplement.
Table 4. Relationship of water consumption
(l/100kg BW) to dry matter intake in llama,
alpaca, and sheep.
Diet Llama Alpaca Sheep
Chenotodium quinoa 1.59b 2.24' 2.14a
Vicia faba 1.69b 2.27, 2.22A
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