Abstract

Following a drastic population decline of guanaco populations throughout the 1970s in Argentina and the Chilean Patagonia, the Chilean government, in collaboration with national and international researchers, accrued increased scientific knowledge of the species. These efforts contributed to meaningful protection and conservation measures, initially in the Magallanes district of Chile, and later throughout the country. Following sustained population growth during the last four decades in the Chilean Patagonia, the guanaco is now managed for meat production in some areas. This has bestowed a value on guanacos that was not originally appreciated by sheep ranchers. These experiences have provided a clearer understanding of the ecological relationships and the economic and social conflicts that exist between the guanaco and the livestock sector under paradigms of sustainable wildlife use and wildlife-human conflicts resolution. Recent research and varied management practices are providing new insights and perspectives, including information that complements the vast biological and ecological data that have been previously published on the guanaco, primarily in Patagonian protected areas. In this chapter we compile, summarize, and analyze previously reported information on the social structure, behavior, population dynamics and genetics that provides a full and nuanced summary of our current understanding of the historical and modern biogeographic status of the guanaco in the Chilean Patagonia.