These wild little camels live at heights of up to 4000 meters and can handle heat and cold weather equally well. The guanaco served the locals to carry loads, but also as a supplier of milk, wool, leather and meat. Guanacos are very frugal animals and flexible in their foraging. They live in family associations with one stallion and several mares.
The stallions fight for the takeover of a territory and the harem living there. Guanacos are very alert animals. If danger threatens, they warn their conspecifics by a high neighing sound. Besides humans, the Puma is the only enemy. Thanks to timely protection measures, there are approximately 600,000 guanacos in the wild. If a guanaco is very excited, it can, like all small camels, choke out a considerable amount of forestomach juice and spit against unpleasant conspecifics or even intrusive people.
