In Santa Cruz Province, 165 wild guanacos were sheared following high standards of animal welfare, producing 57 kg of high-quality fiber for commercial use. WCS Argentina spearheaded the initiative along with producers, provincial government agencies, and the federal research agency CONICET to promote alternative management strategies for the species that contribute to the regional economy and the conservation of nature.
Guanacos are iconic herbivores native to the grasslands of South America. In the northern reaches of their current distribution, from Peru to northern Argentina and Chile, their populations are small and relatively isolated, and many of them run the risk of local extinction. By contrast, in areas of Argentine and Chilean Patagonia, their populations have recovered in recent decades. There, the greatest challenge is finding tools that allow coexistence between abundant guanaco populations and traditional livestock raising, with healthy grasslands for both. Santa Cruz Province in Argentina is home to the largest number of guanacos and to the biggest challenge.
“The conservation of guanacos is essential, not only because of their role in the ecosystem as the main food source for native carnivores and scavengers, but also because of their capacity to contribute to grassland restoration and adaptation to increasing aridity caused by climate change,” explains Andrés Novaro, Director of Terrestrial Conservation for WCS Argentina. This organization has dedicated a significant effort to the conservation and sustainable use of guanacos in Patagonia throughout the past 30 years.
One of the activities WCS promotes, in collaboration with researchers from CONICET and wildlife management agencies, is the production of fiber by live-shearing wild guanacos, which are later released. Thanks to its fineness and high quality, this fiber can be transformed into clothing items valuable enough to turn a profit for producers based on their efforts to develop coexistence between guanacos and their livestock.
The live-shearing operation was carried out in late 2023 with 165 wild guanacos in a livestock ranch in Santa Cruz, resulting in 57 kg of high-quality natural fiber which will soon be processed. The number of sheared and released guanacos made this experience the most successful thus far in the province. It was supervised by the General Directorate for Wildlife, which is under the Provincial Agrarian Council (CAP), and relied on technical support and monitoring by WCS Argentina. Producer Alejandro Llaneza and his team previously received training based on a protocol designed by CONICET researchers with participation from WCS Argentina.
Years of research were used to determine a model for herding, capture, shearing, and release that reduces the stress and impact on guanaco populations. A protocol for live shearing was created from this model, endorsed by the international certifier Wildlife Friendly Enterprise Network. Thanks to the Santa Cruz producer’s compliance with this protocol, the fiber obtained in 2023 became the first guanaco fiber to achieve this certification, which mohair and merino fibers had already received.
“Live-shearing wild guanacos is possible on some ranches. It isn’t a simple job; it requires skill and coordination for herding and using special equipment. Respect for the animals is always present, so adapting to the welfare standards wasn’t difficult. Live-shearing allows us to achieve profitability, which adds up and complements our traditional work with sheep. We need the support of the province and of other institutions for this project to have a future,” affirms Llaneza, who is also certified in wildlife management in Santa Cruz.
A FINE AND WILD FIBER
The sustainable use of some wildlife species, such as the guanaco, can contribute significantly to the regional economies of Patagonia. In ranches that meet the necessary conditions to carry it out, live-shearing guanacos and releasing them into their habitat offers a complementary alternative to traditional rural production.
“Livestock production is dynamic, and we must pay attention to the opportunities that come up, whether because of technological advances, market changes, or innovative ideas,” provides Adrián Suarez, president of the Provincial Agrarian Council of Santa Cruz. “In some cases, the production of wild guanaco fiber represents an opportunity for local economic development and will allow producers to stop seeing guanacos as competition that should be eliminated, instead seeing them as allies to livestock production in Patagonia. Offering a fiber that is considered a luxury by the international market, and with a special certification that endorses its production methods, places Santa Cruz in a prominent position, considering the number of guanacos we have in the province and the operative capacity that our producers can provide,” adds Suarez, who also highlights the use of other sub-products of the species
AN ALTERNATIVE PRODUCTION AND CONSERVATION MODEL BASED ON SCIENCE
Even though guanacos are not endangered in Argentina, some populations could reach this status unless their management and commercialization conform to an effectively drafted regulatory framework that prevents interference with their conservation. In this vein, the recent inclusion of the guanaco in Appendix II of the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species (CMS) and its previous inclusion in Appendix II of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) create normative conditions to simultaneously optimize the sustainable use and protection of the species.
“Guanacos are a native species that is part of the original grassland ecosystem. They also interact with human activities in an ever-changing way by crossing fences and highways on their migratory routes. Our objective is to work with more and more Patagonian producers, allowing them to sustainably and productively manage the guanacos that cross their lands and to become our allies in the conservation of the species and its migrations,” Novaro comments.
In addition to live-shearing, WCS promotes other actions for the conservation of guanacos such as monitoring populations; conducting research that produces data for better management of the species; closing oil exploration roads to prevent intensive poaching; and facilitating government control of permitted management activities, poaching, and illegal trafficking of fiber and meat, among others.
