Shortest species of camel

The vicuña (Vicugna vicugna), closely related to the llama and guanaco, and living in the high Andes of South America, is the world's smallest species of camelid. Adults have a head and body length of 1.3–1.9 metres (4 feet 3 inches–6 feet 3 inches), a tail length of 15–25 centimetres (6–10 inches), a shoulder height of 70–110 centimetres (2 feet 3 inches–3 feet 7 inches), and a weight of 35–65 kilograms (77–143 pounds).

Vicuñas look more like their relative, the llama, with a soft tawny coat and no hump (like the Arabian camels have). The fossil record tells us the the camel family originated in North America, with evidence of the smallest "camels" being the size of rabbits! The vicuña is currently an endangered species, as it was hunted to near-extinction in the 1970s, however this has since prompted large attempts by Peru, Chile and Argentina to conserve these animals.