Research on Llamas, Alpacas and the Inca Empire

We all have some interest in llamas and alpacas, yet some of you may not be completely aware of the essential role they played in kick-starting Andean societies. Without them there would have been no Machu Picchu, nor could Andean people have survived at such high...

2018 AGM Minutes

Minutes of the 2018 Annual General Meeting New Zealand Llama Association Inc (Incorporation No: 1427864) The 15th Annual General Meeting of the NZ Llama Association was held at The Manakau Community Hall Manakau, Levin, at 1.30pm, May 5th, 2018. In the absence of the...

Seasons Greetings

Best wishes of the season to all llama folk in New Zealand. Enjoy your holiday and time with family and travel safely. And don’t forget to take a supply of carrots down to your llamas on Xmas Day. Many thanks to all those who contributed to the Christchurch Show, the...

For the llove of llamas

Country Life 9:40 pm on 15 September 2017 A large herd of llamas live on Keith Payne’s 30-hectare hill property tucked into the secluded Blythe Valley in North Canterbury.  His is one of only two guanaco studs outside South America. Several of Keith’s...

What Exactly is a Ccara Llama?

When I commenced my research into the history of llamas a number of years ago, I was at first surprised that the word for llama in both Quechua and Aymara is “KARA”. As the indigenous people did not have a written language, this was expressed in english by the...

A Day in the Life of a Wild Llama

He didn’t have a name, but if a name had been appropriate he would be called Pacha Kuyuy, the Quechua word for earthquake. An hour after he was born, a mighty quake had rattled through the Andes. That was 8 years ago. Today he had been awake, on alert, for most of the...