Estudios previos han mostrado que la Lama guanicoe fue la presa principal de los cazadores-recolectores que habitaron Patagonia a lo largo del Holoceno. No obstante, su forma de aprovechamiento pudo haber variado a lo largo del tiempo en respuesta a las condiciones paleoambientales y a la dinámica poblacional. Sin embargo, hasta la actualidad esta problemática ha sido poco explorada en la cuenca del río Santa Cruz (Patagonia, Argentina). En este trabajo se analiza la existencia de variaciones en el procesamiento del guanaco por parte de los grupos humanos que habitaron el sitio Río Bote 1 entre circa 4200 y 350 años aP. Los resultados alcanzados, si bien sugieren continuidades, tales como el predominio de una estrategia basada en el aprovechamiento de su porción apendicular, también señalan la existencia de variaciones en el procesamiento de sus recursos a lo largo del tiempo. Estas últimas parecen relacionarse tanto con los efectos de las fluctuaciones climáticas, como con los cambios demográficos en las poblaciones humanas.

Conflicts between people and wildlife have become widespread as people move to areas previously home to wildlife and as wild populations recover. In Patagonia, one of the main threats to guanaco Lama guanicoe conservation is the animosity of sheep ranchers towards the species. As key stakeholders in guanaco conservation we assessed ranchers’ perceptions regarding guanaco abundance in Isla Grande de Tierra del Fuego, Argentina. We contrasted these perceptions with estimated guanaco abundance and explored the socio-ecological factors influencing perceptions and how perceptions of overabundance are rooted in contextual factors rather than actual abundance. We performed semi-structured interviews with ranchers from Isla Grande and estimated guanaco abundance independently using density surface modelling. Ranchers were divided into three categories depending on their perception of guanaco abundance: ‘too many’, ‘many’ and ‘normal’. Those in the ‘many’ and ‘normal’ categories perceived guanaco abundance as being similar to actual abundance, whereas those in the category ‘too many' overestimated guanaco abundance. The perceived issues affecting livestock production varied between categories, although feral dogs emerged as the main problem. Negative perceptions of the guanaco stemmed from ranchers' beliefs that the species reduces forage availability for livestock, and from their disappointment about the government's handling of concerns regarding livestock production. Greater understanding and integration of the human dimension in conservation are needed to design more inclusive and resilient management plans.

In certain areas of South America, free-ranging, wild guanacos (Lama guanicoe) are exploited for fibre by local people. This activity includes the capture and handling of animals which can adversely affect their behaviour and physiology. This study investigated the behavioural and physiological responses of guanacos to shearing and handling activities in order to obtain a better picture of the welfare state of individuals. Parameters that were assessed consisted of: time enclosed; handling time; sex; age; and vital signs (heart beat frequency per minute, respiratory rate per minute, body temperature and body condition). Blood samples were also collected to measure serum cortisol levels and neutrophil/lymphocyte ratios. Frequencies of spitting, kicking, escape attempts and vocalisations were recorded as behaviours considered indicative of stress. Our results showed that stress behaviour frequencies were higher with increased handling time, whereas serum cortisol and N/L levels were higher when body condition scores were low. Handling time should be kept as short as possible to minimise individuals’ stress levels, particularly when body condition is low. Stress behaviour rates and serum cortisol levels were higher in juvenile compared to adult guanacos. Finally, both physiological measures of stress — serum cortisol concentrations and N/L ratios — were higher during the management activities of 2010 than in 2009, which may have been as a result of more inclement weather in 2010. When managing guanacos, it is important to consider both animal traits and previous environmental conditions and to avoid shearing juveniles and individuals with poor body condition scores if weather conditions are severe. These management recommendations are likely to improve animal welfare, facilitating sustainable management of this wild and emblematic species from the desert biomes of South America.

Los camélidos sudamericanos han sido uno de los recursos de mayor importancia desde la llegada de los primeros humanos al continente, registrándose su domesticación para los Andes centro-sur alrededor de 4400-3000 aP. Las investigaciones realizadas en la región Chaco-Santiagueña para la etapa Agroalfarera (350 dC hasta la conquista española en el siglo dieciséis) en su mayoría han interpretado la presencia o ausencia de la especie doméstica de camélidos Lama glama a partir de fuentes etnohistóricas o por consideraciones eto-ecológicas. Sin embargo, con el avance de los estudios zooarqueológicos en la región, asignamos por técnicas osteométricas y análisis estadísticos multivariados especímenes al taxón L. glama para un sitio Agroalfarero tardío (ca. 1200-1500 dC). En este trabajo se incorporan sitios de toda la secuencia Agroalfarera y de distintas zonas geográficas de la región Chaco-Santiagueña con el fin de diferenciar especies de camélidos. A partir de los resultados se interpreta el posible uso de camélidos silvestres y domesticados en la región desde los primeros grupos sedentarios. El uso de llamas podría haber sido una herramienta importante para el establecimiento de redes de interacción social a grandes distancias.

Locally abundant ungulates often come into conflict with human activities. After a population collapse that reached its nadir in the 1970s, the guanaco Lama guanicoe population in Tierra del Fuego, Chile, recovered and is now in conflict with sheep ranching and commercial logging. We studied the effects of livestock density and environmental factors on guanaco abundance and spatial ecology, using seasonal counts and radio-telemetry in a private protected area (Karukinka) and neighbouring ranches in a forest–grassland mosaic in Tierra del Fuego. Guanaco density was highest in low-elevation areas with more grassland cover and little snow accumulation in winter. In low-elevation areas, guanaco density decreased with increasing livestock density. Radio-tracked guanacos exhibited a partial migration pattern: two individuals migrated seasonally, selecting grasslands and avoiding forests mainly in summer, whereas six sedentary individuals used habitats according to their availability. Migratory guanacos spent the summer in Karukinka and winter on nearby ranches. High sheep densities and poor range condition on the ranches reduce key forage resources available to guanacos and may promote use of forests by guanacos, affecting forest regeneration and increasing conflict with logging. Current guanaco harvest by loggers may fail to reduce the impact of guanacos on logged-forest regeneration if guanaco spatial ecology and sheep management are not considered. Our results provide insight into the interactions among guanacos, forests and livestock ranching, and may be used to reduce conflicts and guide conservation in the Fuegian ecosystem.

Live-shearing of wild guanacos Lama guanicoe may affect their reproductive success and population resilience, and therefore it is important to assess the biological sustainability of obtaining their wool. We evaluated effects of capture and shearing on survival and reproduction, population parameters, daily movements, ranging behaviour and spatial distribution in sedentary and migratory populations. We assessed population variables by radio-telemetry and line-transect surveys before and after capture. We estimated high post-shearing survival rates in both populations and similar yearling production in shorn and non-shorn females in the migratory population. We did not find significant variations in density and population structure before and after shearing in the sedentary population, whereas in the migratory population density decreased and the population structure changed significantly after assembly of the capture structure, returning to pre-assembly levels 1 month later. The mean daily distance moved by radio-collared guanacos during the first 2 days after shearing was three times longer than during the following 30 days. There was a 25% decrease in the mean home-range size of shorn guanacos between the first and second month after shearing but this decline appeared to be associated with a seasonal change in movement, because a similar reduction occurred during the same period the following year, when the guanacos were not shorn. Live-shearing modified the spatial distribution pattern in the sedentary population but did not have a significant effect on the migratory population. Management of guanacos may contribute towards developing a biologically sustainable economic activity that promotes conservation of wildlife and habitats.

Conservation interventions increasingly involve active management of relative species abundances, especially when taxa of conservation concern are threatened by complex food web interactions. Unfortunately, the complexity of such interspecific interactions means that well-meaning management interventions can have unexpected, sometimes detrimental, effects on the species they are intended to protect. Here we report that the abrupt removal of an abundant non-native prey species (domestic sheep) and the cessation of predator control, actions intended to protect huemul deer Hippocamelus bisulcus in the future Patagonia National Park, appear to have had negative effects on this Endangered ungulate. During and following the changes in predator–prey management, predation of huemul fawns and females older than 1 year by native culpeo foxes Lycalopex culpaeus and pumas Puma concolor increased 3- and 5-fold, respectively. Predictions from demographic models suggest that elevated mortality rates of female huemul older than 1 year will, on average, cause this population of huemul to decline. These results highlight risks of unintended consequences when aggressive management actions are taken to protect taxa embedded in complex food webs. They also suggest that careful consideration of both inter- and intra-trophic level effects among all species in a system is warranted before conservation interventions are undertaken.

The guanaco Lama guanicoe was the only large native herbivore widely distributed across Patagonia until the introduction of domestic sheep Ovis aries. Guanacos have declined because of competition with sheep for forage, high hunting pressure and habitat degradation. Península Valdés is a protected area where sheep ranching is the predominant activity. A ranch formerly dedicated to sheep production was converted into a private wildlife reserve, from which all the sheep were removed in 2005. We studied changes in guanaco abundance inside and outside the reserve after sheep removal, and also plant cover of various vegetation types. We found that guanaco abundance was higher inside than outside the reserve, and increased by three-fold within 3 years. Total plant cover and grass cover were higher inside than outside the reserve. Our results showed that guanacos reacted rapidly to changes in management, and suggest that even at a high density guanacos would not be as damaging to the vegetation as sheep. Although management changes resulted in significant changes in guanaco abundance locally, the size of a protected area influences the persistence of wild populations. A large herbivore such as the guanaco needs to be managed across large areas. We believe it is necessary to implement a management plan for Península Valdés that allows for the coexistence of sustainable livestock production and healthy wildlife populations.

The effects of mountain lion Puma concolor predation on guanaco Lama guanicoe mortality was investigated during the historically severe winter of 1995 in Torres del Paine National Park, Chile. The 45 guanaco carcasses located represented 3% of the entire guanaco population of which 74% were mountain lion kills, 13% died from malnutrition, 2% died from fence entanglement and 11% died from unknown causes. Depleted bone marrow fat was observed in 20% of all carcasses. The number of guanaco deaths differed among sex and age classes, particularly in juveniles (< 1 year of age), which died more often than expected (P < 0.001). Fresh guanaco carcasses (n = 19) killed by mountain lions were located in tree and shrub habitats 79% of the time and were significantly greater than expected values based on the relative availability of these habitats (P < 0.001). Observations of the spatial distribution of mountain lion kills and guanaco mixed-sex groups were similar (P = 0.10), suggesting that mountain lions responded to winter migratory movements made by guanacos. Overall, adult guanacos experienced surprisingly lower levels of mortality (adult male = 1%, adult female = 2%) than expected, despite the severe winter conditions, while juveniles experienced higher levels of mortality (13%) than expected. In comparison to other years (1991–96), the severe winter of 1995 (i.e. this investigation) had the greatest total mortality for juveniles, although the proportion of deaths caused by mountain lion predation for juveniles was greatest during other winters.

An initial experiment was conducted to investigate the variability of selected metabolites in the plasma from guanacos. A second experiment directly compared plasma biochemical values for guanacos with those for sheep. During the first experiment, jugular blood samples were collected from five mature castrated guanacos using an embedded experimental design. Weekly blood samples were collected at the same time (09.00 h) on the same day each week for 7 weeks. Daily blood samples were collected at the same time each day (09.00 h) during week 5. On day 2 of week 5, blood samples were collected every 3 h from 09.00 h for a 24-h period. No evidence of a cyclical pattern of plasma parameters was observed on a weekly, daily or 3-h basis. During the second experiment, the metabolic profiles of 11 mature castrated guanacos and 11 mature barren ewes (Merino × Welsh Mountain) were compared. Significant differences in plasma concentrations of all metabolites except urea-nitrogen (guanacos -15·42 mmolll, sheep - 15·60 (s.e.d. 1·506) mmolll) were found with values for guanacos v. sheep as follows: glucose (7·63 v. 3·63 (s.e.d. 0·268) mmolll); acetate (0·26 v. 0·48 (s.e.d. 0·035) mmol/l); β hydroxybutyrate (0·06 v. 0·50 (s.e.d. 0·019) mmol/l); albumin (33·4 v. 29·5 (s.e.d. 0·93) g/l); and total protein (53·8 v. 65·6 (s.e.d. 2·12) g/l); (P < 0·001 for all previous variables); non-esterified fatty acids (0·48 v. 0·29 (s.e.d. 0·048) meq per 1; P < 0·01) and a-amino N (2·44 v. 2·66 (s.e.d. 0·088) mmolll; P < 0·05). This study indicates that the reference plasma metabolite concentrations of sheep are not suitable alternatives for use for nutritional or veterinary purposes with guanacos, but those of llamas or alpacas are. The results also suggest that energy capture and transport in camelids may be markedly different from that in conventional ruminants.