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SPECIES Vicugna vicugna

Author:Molina, 1782.
Citation:Sagg. Stor. Nat. Chile: 313.
Common Name:Vicugna
Type Locality:Chile, "abondano nella parte della Cordigliera spettante alle Provincie de Coquimbo, e di Copiapò" (cordilleras of Coquimbo and Copiapo).
Distribution:NW Argentina, W Bolivia, N Chile, and S Peru.
Status:CITES – Appendix I [except for populations of Bolivia and Peru, and parts of the population in Argentina and Chile, which are included in Appendix II]; U.S. ESA – Endangered; IUCN – Lower Risk (cd).
Comments:Systematics reviewed by Wheeler (1995). Regarded as polytypic (mensalis a distinct subspecies) by some authors (Haltenorth, 1963) but systematics here follows Cabrera (1961). Kadwell et al. (2001) suggested that the Alpaca should be assigned to Vicugna. Gentry et al. (1996) had already proposed that majority usage be confirmed by adoption of Vicugna vicugna as the name for the wild taxon of Vicugna on the assumption that the Alpaca is the domesticated descendent and asked the International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature to use its plenary powers to rule that the name for this wild species is not invalid by virtue of being antedated by pacos, the name based on the domestic form. A ruling has been made in their favour (International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature, 2003a).
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Synonyms:

    elfridae (Krumbiegel, 1949)
    frontosa (H. Gervais and Ameghino, 1880)
    gracilis (H. Gervais and Ameghino, 1880)
    mensalis (Thomas, 1917)
    minuta (Burmeister, 1891)
    pristina (Amhegino, 1891)
    provicugna (Boule, 1920)
    vicunia (Tschudi, 1844)
    vicunna (Tiedemann, 1804)

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