THE VICUGNA. 



577 



The height of the Bactrian Camel is rather more than that of the Arabian species, and 

 its color is generally brown, which sometimes deepens into sooty black, and sometimes fades 

 into a dirty white. 



The true camels are exclusively confined to the Old World, but find representatives in the 

 New World in four acknowledged species of the genus Llama. 



These animals are comparatively small in their dimensions, and possess no hump, so that they 

 may easily be distinguished from the camels. Their hair is very woolly, and their countenance 

 has a very sheep-like expression, so that a full-haired Llama instantly reminds the spectator 

 of a long-legged, long-necked sheep. The feet of the Llamas are very different from those of 

 the camels, as their haunts are always found to be upon rocky ground, and their feet must 



YAMMA, OR LLAMA. —Auchenia lama. 



of necessity be accommodated to the ground on which they are accustomed to tread. The toes of 

 the Llama are completely divided, and are each furnished with a rough cushion beneath, and a 

 strong, claw-like hoof above, so that the member may take a firm hold of rocky and uneven 

 ground. 



Four species of Llamas are now acknowledged ; namely, the Vicugna, the Guanaco, the 

 Yamma, and the Alpaca, each of which will be briefly described. 



The Vicugna is found in the most elevated localities of Batavia and Northern Chili, and 

 is a very wild and untamable animal, having resisted all the attempts of the patient natives to 

 reduce it to a state of domestication. It is extremely active and sure-footed in its mountain 

 home, and being equally timid and wary, is seldom captured in a living state. It lives in herds 

 near the region of perpetual snow, and in its habits bears some resemblance to the chamois. 

 The short, soft, silken fur of this animal is very valuable, and causes the death of thousands 

 of Vicugnas, which are slain by various methods merely for the sake of their coats. The 



