Some subspecies of giraffes are in danger of extinction due to poaching, habitat degradation and lack of government conservation plans to regulate such acts and promote the respect and preservation of their life. Their unusual size is not enough to avoid the negative consequences of the activities of man. Giraffes can successfully live in the wild for about 20 to 25 years with the right conditions. In fact, they usually target the offspring and only attack the adults when they have no choice because it is a high risk of death. Leopards, hyenas, and crocodiles are other dangers that giraffes, especially the young and sick have to face, and although they often win the battles, the giraffes are not an easy prey. That combined with the fact that they have a very long gestation period of more than a year make difficult to recover the populations. While giraffes don’t have to worry too much about predators as adults, only between 25%-50% of their offspring make it to maturity because of lions, hyenas, leopards, wild dogs and other predators. Mothers, evidently, do everything to protect their defenseless offspring, that are more vulnerable to the attacks of predators. Even the fearsome Lions avoid such impacts because they could die if reached by a direct kick from a giraffe. The kick of a giraffe is powerful and lethal, and it is how they defend from their predators. If giraffes are not aggressive, how do they defend themselves? Just see the thickness and strength of their legs, and you will have the answer. They almost always remain in an upright position while resting except the weak and the very young.Īnother interesting feature of giraffes is their defense mechanism. They sleep only about 4.6 hours per day, intermittently during the night. When there is plenty of food up high in the trees, they will consume it first, so the others do not represent any competition for them. Giraffes are very gentle animals, and they tend to do very well sharing with other plant eaters in the wild the same feeding grounds. For many years it was considered a single species with up to nine subspecies, but latest technologies like mitochondrial and nuclear DNA analysis are changing the taxonomy classification of some species, and giraffes are not the exception. It has been some controversy during the recent years, regarding the taxonomic classification of the Giraffe. Although there are several theories, none is fully accepted by the scientific community. Since the times of Jean-Baptiste Lamarck and Charles Darwin, some hypotheses have been stated to explain why giraffes developed such characteristic that other non-herbivorous animals didn’t. The explanation about why evolution provided giraffes with such a long neck still keeps scientists debating about it. The tongue of giraffes is black and can measure up to 50 cm. They are the tallest animals in the world, reaching a height up to 6 meters. Giraffes have only seven vertebrae in their necks, just like humans. The heart of a giraffe weighs about 22 pounds and can reach up to 2 feet long. Giraffes have 7 vertebrae in their necks.The heart of the giraffe is about 22 pounds and 2 feet long.These spots vary in size, shape, color and separation between each species.
They can be used to help researchers identify them both in the wild and in captivity. In fact, they are one of the most visited animals at zoos around the world.Įvery single giraffe in the world has a unique pattern of spots. The tall and lanky body covered in spots is very unusual and an animal that most people enjoy seeing. There is no way to mistake a giraffe for any other animal out there in the world. Each species and subspecies that live today have a fur design different from each other, and, even more, each giraffe has a unique pattern that never repeats in another individual, just like our fingerprints. They measure up to 6 m in height and weigh a maximum of 2,000 kg, dimensions which combined with their coat give them a unique and beautiful look.
Giraffe predators and prey skin#
They have a pair ossicones or horns covered with skin and a short vertical mane that goes from the head to the hump at the end of the neck. Giraffes are the tallest terrestrial animals in the world. We know that they have great height, are native to Africa and that its most iconic characteristic is its long neck that serves them to reach the top of the trees when looking for food. Most of us have heard a lot about giraffes, and we have enjoyed watching their impressive size in zoos. Giraffes are mammals that belong to the order Artiodactyla and the Giraffidae family, which also includes the Okapi, an animal that shares certain characteristics with the giraffe but with a very different appearance.
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