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GiraffsThe giraff is the tallest of all land-living animals and has the largest neck to body ratio in the world. The giraff, scientifically known as Giraffa camelopardalis, is a mammal that lives on the savannas of central, south and east Africa and walk around looking majestically down on others from a height up to 18 feet (5,5 meters). Many other animals stay close to the massive giraff, weighs up to 3.000 pounds (1.400 kg), as it has a great view of the savannah and could easily see oncoming predators. Although the giraff looks quite special, it is related to deer and cattle, the closest relative is the okapi. |
The giraff has a spotted body in sandy brown colours and its front legs are a bit longer and bigger than the hind ones. That is so that the giraff could defend itself if attacked, which seldom happens to adult giraffs. When the giraff do get attacked it makes powerful kicks that could shatter bone but also swings its neck, trying to hit the attacker with its horns. The horns are not common horns as you would see on a cow but more like two knobs at the top of the giraffs head. Usually these horns are used when fighting other giraffs over the right to mate with certain females.
The female then carry the baby giraff for about 14 months and then give birth to a single youngling. Baby giraffs might be a bit shaken after birth but will stand and run around in just a couple of minutes. The rate of survival for the young giraff is quite low, only one out of four lives to become adults, but the ones that survive can look forward to a healthy life of 25 years.
The giraff is a non-territorial and social animal who spends its life living in herds.
The giraff has a very long blue tongue that it uses to eat and clean itself. The tongue can actually reach all over the giraffs head and get easily rid of bugs or vermin. Eating mostly from the top of trees, the giraff could go days without water, instead of drinking it, the giraff gets it straight out of the leaves that it eats. But sometimes the giraff do need to drink and that brings a couple of problems very special for the giraff. Because of the length of the giraffs neck, the heart needs to pump an enormous quantity of blood against gravity and into its head. Therefore, when the giraff bends forward, the amount of blood rushing forward would instantly kill it, if it wasn’t for a very complex system that regulates the blood pressure.
Although poachers hunt giraffs for their skin, tail and head, the tallness of the giraff makes it hard to sneak up on and the fact that the giraff only need 20 minutes to 2 hours of sleep a day makes it even harder. Hopefully this will ensure the survival of this awesome-looking animal
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Copyright 2005 giraffs.info. header picture copyright Sandra Fenley
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