“The newborn Guanacos are able to walk immediately – these ‘Chulengos’ can keep up with the herd right away”

About the only creatures who seem at home in the gale force winds that sweep the hillsides of Patagonia in southern Chile are the Guanacos, camel-like wild ancestors of the llama.

Life is tough here: the landscape and weather are harsh; the competition for mates and grazing areas is violent; and the stealthy puma, arch-enemy and predator, is always lurking.

Camels first lived in North America. Today wild camels exist in Africa, Asia, Australia and South America - but no longer in North America. Both the North American camel and the North American llama are now extinct.
Llamas and Alpacas, and their wild Guanaco siblings all live in a thin strip of the Andes Mountains from Peru all the way down to Chile. Llamas are about the size of small donkeys, and are used by people like donkeys to carry heavy loads.

Spitting Mad: Wild Camels of the Andes by National Geographic concentrates on the Guanaco, the wild camel. We witness the birth of a young chulengo, the mating classes, playful sparring, aggressive (and at times extremely violent) expulsion of yearlings from the family group.
We will also follow the Guanacos’ struggle during the cold and unforgiving winter as the herd migrates across the Andes. Through the seasons the animals will encounter other creatures, including foxes, condors, caracaras and the ever present puma.

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close-up photo of DVD

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