632 



NATURAL HISTORY. 



in some places. Many have been captured and broken in, and occasionally 

 the traveler sees a train of these animals carrying burdens across the 

 plains, presenting a scene that calls to mind the desert regions of the 

 Old World. 



The South American camels differ considerably from their eastern 

 relatives in appearance, though but little in structure. They occur only 

 in the cooler regions of the Cordilleras, ascending higher in the mountains, 







Fig. 500. — Alpaca (Auchenia paca) . 



and thus obtaining a proper climate, as they approach the equator. The 

 number of species is a matter of some doubt. Two distinct species occur 

 in a wild condition (the guanaco and the vicuna), while two different forms 

 — the alpaca and the llama — are domesticated, but are unknown in a 

 wild state. Some regard these latter as descendants from the others, 

 while other naturalists regard them as entirely distinct species. Accord- 

 ing to these views there may be either two or four species in South 

 America. 



