The guanaco is another interesting animal that the Creator has designed to live in unusual surroundings. This charming woolly animal lives at the lower end of South America. It is fitted for the sea-level plains of Argentina and Patagonia, as well as the cold, wind-swept islands of Tierra del Fuego and the high, snow-covered peaks of the Andes mountains in Bolivia, Chile and Peru. It lives in family groups that migrate between these winter and summer feeding areas. Guanaco blood has about four times the red blood cells that we humans have. This is what enables them to live in the great heights of the Andes.
The guanaco often has to survive long periods without water, so God has given it the ability to get its water from the food it eats. It also has been given padded feet that have two hard, sharp little toenails, which give it a good grip on rocky ground, as well as in sand and snow. Warm, woolly fur covers its entire body. It can “open” and “shut” parts of it to help it stay warm or to cool down.
Closely related to llamas and vicunas, the guanaco is the most graceful of them. But it is wild and not used as a pack animal like the llama.
Babies are born between October and January (spring and summer south of the equator). Called chulengos, they are playful and have mock battles, jumping at each other and wrestling with their long necks. They like to tease the patient adults too. The young have downy, cinnamon-colored coats with white underparts.
Only one day after birth, the chulengo can run swiftly, but the mother nurses it for a year or more before the dominant male in the group chases any males away. The females stay with their mothers but bachelor males band together in groups of up to 50 until they are about five years old and then they establish their own families.
Isn’t it interesting that all creatures on earth need both food and water? They may get them in different ways, as we see in the guanaco, but God has made all people and animals dependent on those two things in order to live. People have another need, as well. We have a soul inside of us that needs God and things that only God can give: the forgiveness of sins, unchanging love and a purpose for living. As our opening verse tells us, Jesus is the bread of life, and He also gives the spiritual water we need. I hope you know the Lord Jesus, who can and will satisfy you like nothing and no one else ever can, if you simply come to Him with your needs and believe on Him. Every moment of every day, this food and drink is available to satisfy your heart.
Did You Know?
Only one day after birth, the chulengo can run swiftly.
Messages of God’s Love 8/6/2023