Llamas are a type of camelid. They seem to have originated from the plains of North America. Llamas then traveled to South America. Many people confuse llamas and alpacas with one other. When the Spaniards arrived to Peru, they went as far as to even call the camelids Peruvian sheep. The llama is derived from the guanaco. The alpaca is derived from the vicuna. This makes them genetically different. (Gade,2013)