The Jaredite Animals in the Land of Promise – Part II

Continued from the previous post regarding the animals the Jaredites brought from Mesopotamia and their use in the Land of Promise, as well as the development of the two animals mentioned in the Book of Ether and unknown to Joseph Smith when he translated the Plates.
    First of all, the only indigenous new world animals that could possibly qualify as the Jaredites “cureloms and cumoms, which were useful to man,” and equal to the elephant and more useful than horses and asses (donkeys), would be the guanaco and the vicuña, from which descended both the llama and the alpaca—two animals with a very long history in Andean South America. No Central or Mesoamerican animal can satisfy the usefulness of the horse and donkey for their riding and conveyance ability, nor the elephant for its productiveness in work and as a beast of burden—with the main value of these animals while they are alive and producing. Almost any animal has value when dead since its meat can be eaten, its hide used for daily necessities, as clothing, leather necessities, and horn, bone, hooves and tail for other needs, such as tools, fish hooks, weapons, ornaments and ropes, etc. However, the real value of elephants, horses and donkeys was in their living and providing daily work and living benefits.

As an example, living animals, like cows and goats, produce milk and wool; sheep produce wool; oxen and cattle provide work, such as pulling power; horses provide transportation and work such as plowing, tree felling and hauling; donkeys provide some transportation and will guard other animals, but mostly they provide conveyance.
    On the other hand, when theorists claim that certain animals fill the role of the Jaredites’ curelom and cumom, they fail to consider that all animals cannot be domesticated. There are several reasons (experts list six), but mainly it has to do with two things: 1) economy—the end result of use justifies the time it takes in development; and 2) behavior—animals that are aggressive, picky eaters, have elaborate courtship rituals, and are not gentle and easy going, simply will not be domesticated, and humans will neither spend the time and effort, nor put up with the difficulty in trying to domesticate them.
    As an example, while the zebra is a relative of the very useful horse, it is far more aggressive and makes terrible human companions, as does the lion, tiger and wild cat, or wolf, though the latter is connected to the dog. The same can be said about the African buffalo and the American bison, two animals that are highly unpredictable and very aggressive, making them quite dangerous to humans.
    This is why irresponsible comparisons made by some theorists that the American buffalo (bison) and the Mountain goat in North America are the Jaredite curelom and cumom is so erroneous. Neither of these two animals are domesticated or would be domesticated because of the extremely aggressive natures, inherent fear of humans and isolation from habitable areas. The same can be said for the sloth and tapir claimed by Mesoamericanists, though for different and earlier stated reasons. However, the important part, is none of these suggested animals are of any value to man while alive—they are not beasts of burden, do not provide useful hair or byproducts, and though the tapir can be petted, the others are not compatible with humans. It is after they are dead that their meat, hide, wool, and products become useful—mostly the buffalo, but the others provide food in different parts of the world. But in that sense, they are no more value for meat than any other hunted animal, such as deer, moose, antelope bear or wild cat.

What needs to be understood is the description given about the two Jaredite animals—of them it is said, “they also had horses, and asses, and there were elephants and cureloms and cumoms; all of which were useful unto man, and more especially the elephants and cureloms and cumoms” (Ether 9:19). Thus the Jaredite animals:
1. Were beasts of burden through comparison with the elephant, horse and ass;
2. Provided transportation;
3. Carried supplies, products and objects;
4. Provided work for farms, clearing fields, plowing, etc.;
5. Were domesticated;
6. Useful to man while alive, and when dead;
7. Were bred from animals known to the Jaredites.
    In Andean South America, the wild guanaco and the vicuña, and their domesticated descendants, the llama and the alpaca are the only two Western Hemispheric animals that provided all of these important benefits to the Jaredites and later the Nehites. They did not have the brute force of the elephant, and perhaps why they were listed after the elephant, but certainly performed similar work, as they did to the horse and ass, matching these latter in all qualities, and being far superior in other stated attributes, surpassing all the earlier stated domesticated animals.
    They are native to the high puna of the South American Andes—a montane grassland and shrubland of the high central Andes, and specifically the regions of Ecuador, Peru, western Bolivia and Chile, as well as peripherally Argentina and Colombia.

These two animals would have been bred by the Jaredites from the camels they brought to their land of promise, especially needed after finding the mountainous regions of the area and the difficulty camels would have had in the rocky terrain. Not only were the llama and alpaca bred from camels, there are only six camelids in the world: the Dromedary camel, the Bactrian camel, the vicuña, guanaco, llama and alpaca.
    The llama and alpaca were the two animals mentioned in the Book of Ether that were unknown to Joseph Smith who used their Nephite or Jaredite names when translating the Plates. In fact, the alpaca and llama were not known in North America until the late 1800s, and not actually introduced, though in very small numbers, into North America until 1930. Their real inclusion into the North American conscience did not begin until the 1970s, when the government lifted all restrictions on animal imports from South America.
    It is well understood that the guanaco and vicuña, which introduced into South America, and that they adapted to the harsh climate, sporadic moisture, high elevations, large daily temperature fluctuation, and unpredictable food supply of the region. It is also understood that the domestication of these two species gave rise to the llama and alpaca, with the llama originating from the guanaco and the alpaca from the vicuña. In fact, the domestication of the llama and alpaca marked the beginning of a high dependence on these animals by the early culture of the Andes, providing not only a beast of burden, as was its predecessor the camel, but also food, fiber, fuel, and shelter. These animals during much later Inca times,  also served as cultural icons in spiritual and fertility rites.
    This domestication also allowed the llamas’ additional use as a beast of burden as well as selective breeding for specific traits. The llama's adaptability and efficiency as a pack animal in the mountain terrain of the Andes made it possible to link the diverse altitude zones and to cover the great linear distances of the region. The llama was bred specifically to produce a large, strong animal for the packing function. The alpaca was bred to accentuate its naturally finer wool. The harvest of this fine wool served as the base for a significant ancient domestic textile market.
    The reign of the llama and alpaca in the Andean region ended abruptly in the early 1500s with the Spanish conquest of that region of South America. The Spaniards initiated their colonization with the systematic destruction of the llamas and alpacas and replaced them with their own domestic species, principally sheep. The European stock displaced the native camelids from every part of the region save the highest reaches of the puna where the foreign stock had no chance of survival because of the harsh climate.

Exiled to the upper regions of their natural territory, the llama and alpaca languished as second-rate citizens while the sophisticated husbandry and management systems, were lost amid Spanish prejudice and misunderstanding. The wild vicuña and guanaco were hunted to the point of near extinction for their fine pelts and to eliminate competition with domestic stock. The llama and alpaca became animals of the poor and formed the base of a subsistence culture for the natives of the high puna.
    Rediscovery of the alpaca's fine wool by the international textile market in the late 1800s led to a higher level of interest in the alpaca, in turn leading to increased management, research, and selective breeding. The llama continued its obscure existence until about 40 years ago. The Andean countries, especially Peru and Bolivia, have, of late, recognized the importance of native camelid species in their cultures and have begun to restore them to their rightful place as the preferred inhabitants of their varied landscape. The alpaca has led in this resurgence because of its desirable fiber. Strong world demand has fostered growth of an economically significant industry and, more importantly, has caused these Andean countries to recognize all the camelid species as unique to their region and as a part of their heritage.
    Obviously, modern transportation capability has reduced the importance of the llama as a beast of burden and means of transportation. Primary emphasis is now being placed on this animal as a food source with fiber production as a secondary function. The exportation of camelids has been closely monitored and discouraged as the Andean countries attempt to improve the quality of their stock and build numbers. However, in the ancient past, the llama and alpaca served all the needs of the early cultures of Andean South America so well, that the animals were venerated in each subsequent generation.