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Alpaca | Habitat, Diet, Lifespan, & Facts | Britannica

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Alpaca, facts and information

Skip to contentNewslettersSubscribeMenuAlpacas (seen at a Scottish farm) are members of the camel family.Photograph by Gannet77, Getty ImagesPlease be respectful of copyright. Unauthorized use is prohibited.AnimalsReferenceAlpaca ShareTweetEmailCommon Name: AlpacaScientific Name: Vicugna pacosType: MammalsAverage Life Span In Captivity: 20 yearsSize: 47 to 85 inches longWeight: 100 to 175 poundsWhat is an alpaca?Alpacas are members of the camel family, domesticated by the people of the Peruvian Andes 6,000 years ago for food, fuel, and fiber. They are ungulates, a group of large hooved mammals that also include sheep and giraffes, with large bodies and legs, long necks, small heads, and medium-length fluffy tails. Although they are often confused with their cousin, the llama, alpacas have shorter ears and blunter, but equally adorable, faces.Alpacas are prized all over the world for their fleecy coats, which are shorn to make warm, soft, lightweight textiles. They boast a variety of 22 coat colors, including white, black, beige, and many shades of brown and gray. Though they are farmed in many places including Australia, the United States, and the United Kingdom, their native lands are the mountains of the Andes, from Bolivia and Colombia down to Peru, Ecuador, and Argentina.There are two domesticated breeds of alpaca: The huacaya, whose fleece is crimped, compact, and soft, makes up 90 percent of the alpaca population. Suri alpacas, whose coats have a corkscrew-like appearance with longer fibers and a silkier texture, account for the rest of the population. They are typically sheared once a year in the spring or early summer before it gets too hot. Suri alpaca are seen in Cotopaxi National Park in Ecuador.Photograph by Steve Bloom Images, AlamyPlease be respectful of copyright. Unauthorized use is prohibited.Male and female alpacas are very similar in appearance. Males are somewhat larger and have more prominent canine and incisor teeth called fighting teeth or fangs. These teeth—which can be over an inch long—are uncommon but not unheard of in herbivores.Diet and behaviorAlpacas have sharp nails, but their feet are padded and so soft they don’t displace the grass they’re standing on. They are strict grazers, eating from the mountains and valleys of the Andes. They’re gentle, docile animals, which are kept in herds and sometimes also kept as companion animals or pets, though alpacas are so social that they only thrive if they live with at least one other alpaca.They have a variety of vocalizations, some of which have multiple meanings. Alpacas hum in a high tone to indicate a question, while humming in deeper tone, called a “status hum,” can signal anything from contentment to tension or pain. A soft clucking or clicking sound or a snort can mean mild aggression. One unambiguous alpaca sound is the shrill, shrieking whistle that the animals use as an alarm call.Reproduction Alpaca males become sexually mature at two and a half years old. Females reach maturity between 10 and 12 months but are not usually bred until they are two years old and half their adult body weight. That’s because smaller females tend to have difficult births.In their native environment of the Andes they breed seasonally. Outside of that range they can breed year-round. A male will pursue a female until she signals she’s receptive by sitting down with her legs tucked under her in what’s called cush or kush position.Alpaca females don’t have consistent reproductive cycles with times of greater fertility—they only ovulate after having mated, at which point a female will actively reject male advances, a possible indicator of pregnancy.Gestation lasts an average of 342 days but can last just over a year. Yet pregnancy isn’t always obvious in alpacas, even toward the end. Females give birth to one baby, called a cria, who will walk shortly afterward. Most crias—90 percent—are born in the daytime, and they weigh about 12 to 15 pounds. They’re weaned at about six months and are about a hundred pounds by their first birthday.ConservationThe International Union for the Conservation of Nature has not evaluated alpacas, which are all domesticated and have been for 6,000 years. During the 16th century Spanish invasion of South America, the alpaca population was cut down by 90 percent. Their closest living wild relative is the vicuña, the smallest member of the camel family native to western and central South America. Alpacas were domesticated from vicunas, while llamas were domesticated from another camel relative, the guanaco.Today’s alpaca population is threatened by climate change, which has changed weather patterns in the Andean region where these animals graze. The once-verdant pastures at their 13,000-foot elevations are drying out and unpredictable changes in temperatures have made them vulnerable to illness.(Learn about the high-altitude quest to save the alpaca.)Another threat to the species is that alpacas can crossbreed with llamas and vicuña. A 2020 study in the Journal of Arid Environments found that interbreeding among species of the camel families of South America is diluting the alpacas’ ancestral genetics.Where they have been farmed, however, they seem to have thrived. It wasn’t until 1984 that alpacas were imported from the Andes to the U.S., which now has a population of more than 250,000. The world alpaca population is almost four million, with 96 percent of them found in Peru and Bolivia.Did you know?Alpacas don’t have any top front teeth.— Smithsonian National Zoo and Conservation Biology InstituteAlpacas demonstrate annoyance with another alpaca by spitting the last thing they ate at the offender.— National Zoo & Aquarium CanberraMating male alpacas make a noise called “orgling,” which sounds a bit like a car that won’t start. The sound induces ovulation in some female alpacas.— American Journal of Biomedical Science and ResearchShareTweetEmailRead This NextBison came to Catalina for a movie 100 years ago. What’s next?AnimalsBison came to Catalina for a movie 100 years ago. What’s next?The invasive species was brought to Santa Catalina Island in 1924. 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Alpaca: Characteristics, Diet, Facts & More [Fact Sheet]

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MammalsAlpaca: Characteristics, Diet, Facts & More [Fact Sheet]Julien 0CommentsHome ❯ Animals ❯ Mammals ❯ Alpaca: Characteristics, Diet, Facts & More [Fact Sheet]With their long, graceful necks and curious, large eyes, alpacas have a unique charm that irresistibly attracts animal lovers around the globe.Native to the high Andes of South America, these soft-footed creatures have been bred for their valuable wool for thousands of years, and have made a significant impact on textile industries worldwide.Agile and hardy, alpacas have adapted to harsh environments that are often too challenging for other domesticated animals. This article delves into the fascinating world of the alpaca, exploring their behavior, diet, habitats, and much more.Contents showThe Alpaca at a GlanceClassificationEssential InformationSpecies and SubspeciesDescriptionHabitat and DistributionBehaviorDiet and Feeding BehaviorPredatorsReproduction and Life CycleConservation and ThreatsFun FactsFrequently Asked QuestionsThe Alpaca at a GlanceClassificationKingdom:AnimaliaPhylum:ChordataClass:Mammalia (Mammals)Order:ArtiodactylaFamily:CamelidaeGenus:VicugnaSpecies:V. pacosEssential InformationAverage Size:Height at shoulder 34-36 inches (85-92 cm)Average Weight:121-143 lbs (55-65 kg)Average Lifespan:15-20 yearsGeographical Range:Originally from South America (Peru, Bolivia, Ecuador, and Chile). Now domesticated worldwide.Conservation Status:Domesticated, not evaluated by IUCNSpecies and SubspeciesThere is only one recognized species of alpaca, Vicugna pacos. However, alpacas are commonly divided into two types or breeds based on their fiber characteristics: Huacaya and Suri.Huacaya alpacas, the most common type, make up about 90% of all alpacas and are distinguished by their fluffy, crimped wool that gives them a teddy bear-like appearance.On the other hand, Suri alpacas are rarer, making up the remaining 10%. They have long, lustrous, and curly fibers that hang down in beautiful dreadlock-style locks.DescriptionAlpacas are small, camelid animals standing at an average shoulder height of 34-36 inches (85-92 cm). Their average weight ranges from 121 to 143 lbs (55-65 kg).They are well-known for their dense, soft wool that comes in a range of 22 natural colors, from a true, non-fading black to brilliant white and various shades of fawn, brown, and gray in between.In terms of sexual dimorphism, male and female alpacas are relatively similar in size, but males often have slightly larger and more pronounced incisor and canine teeth (commonly known as “fighting teeth”) that can be used during dominance disputes.Habitat and DistributionAlpacas are native to the Andean mountain range of South America, particularly Peru, Bolivia, Ecuador, and northern Chile, where they inhabit high altitudes of up to 14,500 feet (4,400 meters). The harsh, high-altitude environments of the Andes, with poor vegetation, cold temperatures, and thin air, have shaped the alpacas into the hardy, adaptable animals we know today.Their exceptional wool serves as excellent insulation against the cold, and their soft, padded feet are low-impact on the delicate Andean terrain. With domestication and the global popularity of alpaca fiber, alpacas have been introduced to various parts of the world, including North America, Europe, Australia, and New Zealand.Despite their Andean origins, they’ve proven to be incredibly adaptable and can thrive in various climates, from the chilly Canadian winters to the hot Australian summers.BehaviorAlpacas are diurnal, active during the day, with peak activities occurring during dawn and dusk. These social creatures live in family groups consisting of a dominant male, females, and their offspring. Adult males without a family group of their own may form “bachelor” herds.Alpacas have a unique way of communicating through a series of sounds. The most common is a gentle humming sound, used in various situations such as curiosity, contentment, worry, or boredom. Other sounds include a piercingly high alarm call to alert the herd of potential danger and aggressive screeches, roars, or clucking during disputes.Diet and Feeding BehaviorAs herbivores, alpacas primarily feed on grass, hay, and silage (fermented, high-moisture stored fodder). Their feeding behavior is similar to that of other ruminants, as they graze for several hours a day, mainly in the mornings and evenings.Alpacas have a pseudo-ruminant digestion process. While they only have one stomach, it has three compartments, which allow efficient extraction of nutrients even from poor-quality forage.PredatorsIn their native Andean habitat, alpacas’ main predators include pumas, foxes, and occasionally, Andean condors that may target weak or juvenile individuals. In other parts of the world where alpacas are farmed, potential predators vary.In North America, for example, alpacas may be preyed upon by coyotes, wolves, or large birds of prey. It is important to note that due to the alpaca’s domestication, human activities and predation by domestic dogs can also pose significant threats.Reproduction and Life CycleAlpacas have unique breeding habits; they are induced ovulators, which means the act of mating itself causes the female to ovulate. Alpaca males, known as machos, are ready to breed by the age of 2 to 3 years, while females, or hembras, can reproduce from 1 to 2 years of age.The gestation period for alpacas is about 11 to 12 months, typically resulting in a single offspring, known as a cria. Twin births are rare. After giving birth, the female can be bred again after about two weeks. The cria is usually weaned at around six months of age.Alpacas have a unique “matriarchal” system. Mothers with their young often group together, and a few experienced females effectively watch over the younger ones’ crias.Conservation and ThreatsAlpacas are not classified as endangered or threatened, with populations being healthy in their native South America, and their global population boosted by their popularity in farming and as pets. They are resilient animals and adaptable to various environments, making them relatively robust in the face of habitat changes.However, they are not entirely without threats. Climate change, which affects the grasslands and high-altitude environments where they typically graze, could potentially impact their populations. Overgrazing can also lead to the degradation of their natural habitats.Conservation efforts for alpacas are generally tied to wider environmental conservation efforts. Given their economic value, there is also a strong incentive for farmers to ensure their populations remain healthy. Sustainable farming practices and responsible stewardship of grazing lands are key to maintaining alpaca populations for the future.Fun FactsAlpacas have been domesticated for thousands of years. In fact, the Moche people of Northern Peru often used alpaca images in their art.There are no wild alpacas. All the ones in existence today are domesticated descendants of the vicuña, a South American ruminant that lives in the high alpine areas of the Andes.Alpacas are very social creatures. They are usually seen in family groups consisting of a dominant male, females, and their offspring.Despite their fluffy appearance, only a small portion of an alpaca’s body weight is actually their wool. Their fiber is lighter and warmer than sheep’s wool.Alpacas hum! It’s a common vocalization, often signaling curiosity, contentment, anxiety, or caution to each other.Frequently Asked QuestionsWhat’s the difference between alpacas and llamas?Alpacas are generally smaller than llamas and have a different physical appearance, including a shorter face, more blunt ears, and denser wool. They’re also reared for their wool rather than as pack animals.How long do alpacas live?The average lifespan of an alpaca ranges from 15 to 20 years, although some have been known to live longer.What do alpacas eat?Alpacas are herbivores and their diet primarily consists of grass and hay. They may also be fed alpaca pellets for additional nutrition.Are alpacas friendly?Yes, alpacas are usually friendly and gentle. However, they are also shy and can get nervous around people or animals they are not familiar with.How fast can an alpaca run?An alpaca can run at speeds of up to 35 miles per hour (56 km per hour) when necessary, but they usually move at a slow, leisurely pace.Tags: AlpacasJulienJulien is an exploration-minded, curiosity-driven traveler and blogger. On a mission to witness the planet's natural beauty and diversity, he shares his experiences on this website through articles, videos, and photography, including interactive virtual tours.Fascinated by animals and plants since young, he is also fond of outdoor and so-called extreme sports, often discovered while traveling and practiced back at home where he focuses on improving his knowledge and skills - so he can explore further on the next trip!More About MeView All PostsYou May Also LikeJune 22, 2023What Eats Coyotes? 9 Predators of CoyotesNovember 23, 2023Echidna: Characteristics, Diet, Facts & More [Fact Sheet]November 4, 2023Are There Wolves in South Dakota? Everything You Wanted to KnowSeptember 30, 2023Lion vs. Lioness – How Do They Differ and What Are Their Roles in The Pride?June 20, 2023Can Cheetahs Climb Trees? 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Alpaca

Lama pacos

The alpaca is a small relative of the camel domesticated by Andean people for its wool. They are slender-bodied animals with long legs and necks, small heads and large, pointed ears. Alpacas are covered in a soft fleece and have soft, padded feet.

Fact Sheet

Physical Description

Alpacas are slender-bodied animals with long legs and necks, small heads and large, pointed ears. They are covered in a soft fleece that is virtually free of guard hair and occurs in a variety of colors. Alpacas have soft, padded feet that leave even the most delicate grasses and terrain undamaged as they graze. The two types of alpacas are huacaya and suri.

Ninety-five percent of alpacas are huacayas. Their crimpy fiber grows perpendicular to the skin, giving them a wooly appearance. Suris have straight fiber that curls toward the ground, hanging in "dreadlocks." However, because of their finer, less dense coat, the suri is not quite as adept at withstanding severe weather. The suri is rarer with only about 5,000 registered in the United States.

The Smithsonian's National Zoo exhibits huacaya alpaca. Alpacas have no top, front teeth. An adult male alpaca's upper and lower incisors and lower canines develop into fighting teeth or fangs that can be more than 1.2 inches (3 centimeters) long. These teeth do not develop as much in females. Aside from this difference in tooth morphology, sexual dimorphism is minimal in alpacas.

Size

Alpacas are the smallest of the domesticated camelid species. Adult alpacas usually range from 100 to 200 pounds (45 to 90 kilograms). Their head and body length ranges from 47 to 85 inches (1.2 to 2.2 meters), and their tail length ranges from 6 to 10 inches (150 to 220 millimeters). Their shoulder height is typically 32 to 40 inches (0.8 to 1.1 meters).

Huacaya alpaca have a birth weight of between 10 and 17 pounds (4.5 to 7.7 kilograms) and grow to an adult weight of between 100 and 190 pounds (45.3 to 86.1 kilograms). Adults stand 32 to 39 inches (81.2 to 99 centimeters) tall at the shoulder.

Native Habitat

Alpacas are one of the domesticated members of the camel (camelid) family, which also includes llamas, guanacos and vicunas from South America, and the Bactrian and Dromedary camels from Asia and Africa. This family of animals originated on the plains of North America about 10 million years ago. A common ancestor to the South American camelids migrated there about 2.5 million years ago. Two wild species, vicunas and guanacos, still live in the Andes today.

Researchers believe that alpacas were developed through selective breeding that was heavily influenced by the vicuna more than 6,000 years ago. Alpacas and wild vicunas are similar in size, fiber and dentition (teeth). Of all the animals found in the Americas prior to European colonization, llamas and their alpaca cousins had the most influence. Like the buffalo of the Great Plains, both species were a source of meat, fuel and hides.

But unlike buffalo, alpacas and llamas were fully domesticated animals, created centuries before the Incas by Andean people who bred wild forms of South American camelids and clearly appreciated the myriad of benefits woven alpaca fiber offered against the harsh environment in which they lived.

As in ancient days, alpacas are important to Andean herders, providing luxury fiber and meat. Their compact size contributes to easy management and to desirability as a companion animal. Alpacas easily learn to lead, jump in and out of vehicles, cush (sit down) and obey other simple commands. Alpacas are shorn for their valuable fleeces. Males produce approximately 8 pounds and females about 5 pounds of easily marketable fiber from their coats per year.

Alpacas exhibit a variety of natural colors, with approximately 22 basic fiber colors and many variations and blends. Alpaca fiber has a cellular structure similar to hair and is more resilient and much stronger than Merino sheep wool. It is highly sought after in Britain, Europe and Japan.

Communication

Alpacas express themselves with a soft hum, other vocalizations and body language, such as neck posturing, ear and tail positioning, and head tilting. They have excellent eyesight and hearing, and will alert the herd and their human keepers of perceived danger with a staccato alarm call. Alpacas rarely spit at people unless frightened or abused, but will use this form of communication with each other to register a complaint.

Food/Eating Habits

Alpacas are strict grazers. In their native South America, domesticated herds feed on grasses from the mountainsides and valleys of the Andes. For thousands of years, alpacas have lived where grass grows sparsely, and they require much less food than most animals their size. In human care, alpacas usually feed on a combination of fresh grass and low-protein hay. The Zoo's huacaya alpaca are fed mixed grass and herbivore feed.

Social Structure

Alpacas are social herd animals, and their only defense is flight. As they feel safest in numbers and have such strong herding instincts, it is best not to have just one alpaca. Alpacas need the companionship of at least one other alpaca to thrive.

Reproduction and Development

Male alpacas reach sexual maturity when they are about 2 1/2 years old. Females are first bred at 16 to 20 months old. Alpacas are induced ovulators. They have no heat cycles and can breed at any time of the year. This means it takes the physical act of breeding to induce ovulation, making artificial insemination unfeasible.

Responsible breeders consider the weather and pasture conditions very carefully when planning their birthing schedules. An average gestation of 335 days (or about 11.5 months) produces a single baby (cria), which is usually delivered from a standing position during daylight hours. Crias are unusually large for the size of alpaca mothers that average between 120 and 140 pounds (54.4 to 63.5 kilograms).

Mothers often give birth to babies weighing 16 to 22 pounds (7.2 to 10 kilograms). Newborn alpaca are not just large, they also grow rapidly. Mothers need plenty of good nutrition to support a growing cria that will usually weigh more than 100 pounds by the time it is a year old. Crias are generally weaned when they are 6 months old.

Fun Facts

It is believed that more than 6,000 years ago, alpacas were developed through selective breeding heavily influenced by the wild vicuna.

Alpacas were fully domesticated by Andean people centuries before the Incas as a source of fuel, meat and fiber for fabric.

Conservation Status

lcLeast Concern

ntNear Threatened

vuVulnerable

enEndangered

crCritically Endangered

ewExtinct in the Wild

exExtinct

ddData Deficient

neNot Evaluated

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Taxonomic Information

Class: MammaliaOrder: ArtiodactylaFamily: CamelidaeGenus and Species: Lama pacos

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开源家族——中文羊驼LLaMA & Alpaca大语言模型 - 知乎

开源家族——中文羊驼LLaMA & Alpaca大语言模型 - 知乎首发于诗品算法切换模式写文章登录/注册开源家族——中文羊驼LLaMA & Alpaca大语言模型琦琦浙江大学工学硕士背景Github：https://github.com/ymcui/Chinese-LLaMA-Alpaca模型文件https://huggingface.co/ziqingyang/chinese-llama-lora-7bhttps://huggingface.co/ziqingyang/chinese-alpaca-lora-7b论文：https://arxiv.org/pdf/2304.08177.pdf这篇技术报告是在2023年4月17日发表的。文章提到，以ChatGPT和GPT-4为代表的大型语言模型LLM掀起了NLP领域的研究浪潮，展现出了人类通用智能（AGI）的能力。然而，LLM的训练和部署都极其昂贵，给构建透明开放的学术研究造成了阻碍。为了解决这一问题，这个项目开源了中文LLaMA模型和指令精调的Alpaca模型。在原始LLaMA模型的基础上，扩充了包含20K中文token的中文词典，提升了编码效率，增强了基础语义理解能力。通过使用中文数据进行二次预训练，并使用中文指令数据进行微调，显著提升了模型对指令的理解和执行能力。一、介绍在之前的文章中，我们介绍过，近期涌现出的ChatGPT和GPT-4不但在多个基准测试中都表现出了令人印象深刻的性能，而且还展现出了few-shot学习以及适应新任务的能力。尽管这些LLM异常强大，但这些模型也具有一定的局限性：1、私有化，这限制了外界对模型源码的访问，阻碍了更广泛的研究社区基于这些成功模型进行进一步研究的能力。2、对于资源有限的研究者来说，训练和部署这些模型所需的巨大计算资源也是一个挑战。为了应对这些限制，NLP研究社区已经转向开源平替方案。最近两个比较有名的模型是：LLaMA和Alpaca（在笔者的前两篇文章中已有详细介绍）。更多细节见：其中Alpaca是在LLaMA的基础上，使用指令数据进行了进一步微调。这些开源LLM旨在促进学术研究、加快NLP领域的研究进展。尽管LLaMA和Alpaca在NLP领域取得了重大进展，它们在处理中文语言任务时，仍存在一些局限性。这些原始模型在字典中仅包含数百个中文tokens（可以理解为单词），导致编码和解码中文文本的效率受到了很大影响。这个项目提出了中文版的LLaMA和Alpaca模型，在原始LLaMA词典的基础上增加了20K个中文单词，从而提升了模型处理和生成中文文本的能力。同时采用了低秩自适应（Low-Rank Adaptation，LoRA）方法，可以保证在不产生过度计算成本的情况下训练和微调模型。这项工作为将LLaMA和Alpaca模型推广到其他语言提供了基础，也提供了一些用于拓展词汇表和提高模型性能的方法。这篇技术报告的贡献如下：1、向原始LLaMA的词汇表中添加2w个中文词汇，增强了中文的编码和解码效率，提高了LLaMA的中文理解能力。2、采用Low-Rank Adaptation (LoRA)方法，实现了中文LLaMA和Alpaca的高效训练和部署，使研究人员能够在不过分消耗计算资源的情况下使用模型。3、评估了中文Alpaca（7B和13B）模型在各种NLU和NLG任务上的表现，在中文语言任务中，相比于原始LLaMA模型，性能有了明显提升。4、公开了相关研究成果。二、中文LLaMA在之前的文章中，已经对原始LLaMA技术进行了深入解读。具体见：琦琦：开源大模型LLaMA（羊驼）论文详解——Facebook母公司Meta推出，超越GPT-3。LLaMA基于transformer结构进行了一些改进，比如预归一化、SwiGLU激活函数以及旋转embedding。LLaMA的参数总数在7B到65B之间。实验数据表明，LLaMA在保持更小模型尺寸的同时，与其他的LLM相比（比如GPT-3），具有相当的竞争性。LLaMA在公开可用的语料库中预训练了1T到1.4T个token，其中大部分数据是英文，因此LLaMA理解和生成中文的能力受到限制。为了解决这个问题，这个项目提出在中文语料库上，对LLaMA模型进行预训练，以增强其基本的中文理解和生成能力。然而，直接在中文语料库上对LLaMA进行预训练也存在相应的挑战：1、原始LLaMA tokenizer词汇表中只有不到一千个中文字符。虽然LLaMA tokenizer可以通过回退到字节来支持所有的中文字符，但这种回退策略会显著增加序列长度，同时会降低处理中文文本的效率。2、字节tokens不仅用于表示中文字符，还用于表示其它UTF-8 tokens，这使得字节tokens难以学习中文字符的语义含义。为了解决这些问题，作者提出了以下两个解决方案来扩展LLaMA tokenizer中的中文词汇：1、在中文语料库上使用SentencePiece训练一个中文tokenizer，使用20000个词汇大小。然后将中文tokenizer与原始LLaMA tokenizer合并，通过组合它们的词汇表，最终获得一个合并的tokenizer，称为中文LLaMA tokenizer，词汇表大小为49953。2、为了使模型适应上一步产生的中文LLaMA tokenizer，研究人员将word embeddings和语言模型的head从V × H 调整为V'× H 的形状，其中V = 32,000代表原始词汇表的大小，而V' = 49,953则是中文LLaMA tokenizer的词汇表大小。新行附加到原始嵌入矩阵的末尾，确保原始词汇表中的token embedding不受影响。初步实验表明，使用中文LLaMA分词器，相比于原始的LLaMA分词器，生成的token数减少了一半左右，原因是，前者的编码长度有了明显的减少，如下表Table 1所示。给定固定的上下文长度时，相比于原始LLaMA分词器，新模型可以容纳约两倍的信息，且生成速度快两倍。这表明，新模型在提高LLaMA模型的中文理解和生成能力方面是有效的。得到了中文LLaMA分词器后，研究人员使用中文LLaMA分词器，基于标准Casual Language Modeling(CLM)任务，对中文LLaMA模型进行预训练。对于给定的输出token序列： x=\left( x_0, x_1,x_2,... \right) ，模型使用自回归的方式训练，以预测下一个token。目标即最小化负对数似然：其中， x_i 表示待预测的token； x_0,x_1,...x_{i-1} 表示上下文。三、中文Alpaca在获得了预训练的中文LLaMA模型后，作者利用斯坦福Alpaca训练采用的方法——指令微调继续训练该模型。每个训练sample由一个指令和一个输出组成。prompt模版如下所示：这个方法与Stanford-Alpaca之间的一个关键区别是，这里只使用为没有输入字段的示例设计的prompt模板，而Stanford-Alpaca则分别为有输入字段和无输入字段的实例使用两个模板。四、PEFT（参数高效的Fine-tuning）方法-LoRA低秩自适应（LoRA）是一种参数有效的训练方法——保留预训练的模型权重，引入可训练的秩分解矩阵。这种方法显著减少了可训练参数的数量。LoRA的公式如下所示，r表示预先确定的秩，d是隐含层大小，A和B是可训练的分解矩阵：为了在预算紧张的情况下实现参数高效训练，LoRA被运用到了中文LLaMA/Alpaca模型训练的所有实验中（包括预训练和微调阶段）。五、实验设置5.1 Pre-training阶段使用原始LLaMA权重对中文LLaMA模型进行初始化，且使用了类似于中文BERT-wwm、MacBERT、LERT等模型所使用的中文语料库，总共有20GB数据。预训练过程包含两个阶段：1、固定模型中的transformer编码器参数，仅训练embedding，适应新添加的中文词向量，同时最小化对原始模型的干扰。2、在注意力机制中增加LoRA权重（adapters），训练embeddings、语言模型head以及新添加的LoRA参数。5.2 Instruction Fine-tuning阶段为了高效的fine-tuning，同样使用了LoRA方法，通过将LoRA adapters添加到MLP层，增加了可训练参数的数量。使用self-instruction方法，从ChatGPT（gpt-3.5-turbo API）中自动获取数据。作者在GitHub上公开了模版和代码细节。超参数设置如下所示。5.3 实验评估方法实验使用了GPT-4作为评估工具，GPT-4将为每个sample提供一个完整的分数（远比人类评估者高效）。然而，由于GPT-4并不总是能够提供准确的分数，所以作者会对其评分进行人工检查，并在必要时进行调整。作者使用以下prompt模版输入到GPT-4中进行评分：六、结果结论：相比于原始LLaMA，中文Alpaca-7B和Alpaca-13B模型的表现有明显的提升。中文Alpaca-13B模型在各项任务中的表现均优于Alpaca-7B模型。以下的例子展示了中文Alpaca模型（7B与13B）在同一个prompt下的对比结果：ReferenceEFFICIENT AND EFFECTIVE TEXT ENCODING FOR CHINESE LLAMA AND ALPACA编辑于 2023-06-11 16:53・IP 属地浙江GPT开源项目LLM（大型语言模型）赞同 181 条评论分享喜欢收藏申请转载文章被以下专栏收录诗品算法宝藏女孩的算法寻宝，大模型、深度学习、优化、

LLaMA模型微调版本：斯坦福 Alpaca 详解 - 知乎

LLaMA模型微调版本：斯坦福 Alpaca 详解 - 知乎首发于【LLM学习】大规模模型学习之路切换模式写文章登录/注册LLaMA模型微调版本：斯坦福 Alpaca 详解陈城南北京航空航天大学计算机科学与技术硕士项目代码：https://github.com/tatsu-lab/stanford_alpaca博客介绍：https://crfm.stanford.edu/2023/03/13/alpaca.htmlAlpaca 总览Alpaca 是 LLaMA-7B 的微调版本，使用Self-instruct[2]方式借用text-davinct-003构建了52K的数据，同时在其构建策略上做了一些修改。性能上作者对Alpaca进行了评估，与openai的text-davinct-003模型在self-instruct[2]场景下的性能表现相似。所以比起成本来看，Alpaca更便宜。 text-davinct-003 与 chatGPT 同为 gpt3.5模型之一，比GPT-3模型 curie、babbage、ada 模型更好的质量、更长的输出和一致的指令遵循来完成任何语言任务整体思路如下图基于 Self-instruct 的数据生成Self-instructSelf-instruct是一个利用LLM来生成指令遵循数据来指令微调模型的框架，核心贡献是生成指令遵循数据。指令数据由指令、输入、输出组成。作者的数据生成piple包含四个步骤：1）生成任务指令，2）确定指令是否代表分类任务，方便3区别3）正常任务使用输入优先方法，分类任务使用输出优先的prompt指令方法生成实例4）过滤低质量的数据。详细的Self-instruct可以看我别的文章。AlpacaAlpaca基于self-instruct，改用GPT-3.5：text-davinci-003来生成指令数据（self-instruct使用的GPT-3：davinci）指令生成时使用新的prompt，直接一次性生成20个任务的指令（self-instruct是迭代生成的，更费钱）指令生成不区分分类/非分类任务，可能是GPT3.5更好，不需要区别了。每个指令只生成1个实例。最终的结果是以少于$500的便宜价格获得了52K的数据，下图反映了其数据多样性，内圈是词根是动词的指令，外圈是表示目标的指令。发布于 2023-06-28 12:25・IP 属地北京人工智能机器学习深度学习（Deep Learning）赞同 4添加评论分享喜欢收藏申请转载文章被以下专栏收录【LLM学习】大规模模型学习之路大规模语言模型（LLM）、视觉模型、多模态模

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开源家族——中文羊驼LLaMA & Alpaca大语言模型 - 知乎

LLaMA模型微调版本：斯坦福 Alpaca 详解 - 知乎

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