In the scorched sun African savannas lives the tallest animal on the planet - the giraffe, whose distant ancestors appeared on Earth about 20 million years ago. Giraffes are known for their exceptionally long necks, but get their name from their bright colors and the Arabic word zarafa, which means smart.
Giraffe in the savanna.
How tall is a giraffe and how much does the tallest mammal in the world weigh? Why is the giraffe like this? Long neck? What does a giraffe eat in the savannas of Africa? How do giraffes sleep and what are their enemies? The answers to these questions may be of interest to both children and adults.
Where does the giraffe live: range today and millions of years ago
During the time of dinosaurs, giraffes were distinguished by great species diversity and lived throughout Africa, as well as in the territories modern Europe and Asia. About 2 million years ago during the period cold snap most species became extinct. Managed to survive the only giraffe, as we know it today and is more similar to the okapi zebra. Together these two animals form the giraffe family.
The modern classification includes 9 subspecies of giraffes, which differ in distribution and pattern. The pattern on each giraffe's skin is unique, like a person's fingerprints. Particularly interesting is the pattern of the reticulated giraffe, formed by dark polygonal spots framed by narrow white stripes, which makes it seem that the animal’s body is covered with a mesh.
Rare, endangered subspecies include:
- the Nubian giraffe, whose population numbers fewer than a thousand individuals, remains in eastern South Sudan and southwestern Ethiopia;
- the West African giraffe is almost extinct, no more than 200 specimens are found only in Niger;
- the Kordofan giraffe is an extremely small subspecies that lives in the Central African Republic and western Sudan;
- The Ugandan giraffe, also known as the Rothschild giraffe, numbers no more than 700 animals preserved in Uganda and Kenya.
The remaining subspecies are considered vulnerable, and their total number is about 100 - 150 thousand individuals:
- the South African giraffe is the most numerous subspecies, whose range covers the savannas of Botswana, Mozambique, South Africa, Namibia and Zimbabwe;
- Thornycroft's giraffe lives in Zambia;
- the Angolan giraffe lives in Botswana and Namibia;
- the Masai giraffe is found in Tanzania and Kenya;
- The reticulated giraffe is common in southern Somalia and northern regions Kenya.
The extinction of modern giraffes is solely the merit of man, who began exterminating animals in ancient times. At first they were killed for their beautiful skins and edible meat; in the 20th century, hunting the tallest mammals became a popular pastime.
Giraffe tongue. Gigantic stature and that amazing neck
Giraffe cubs are born quite tall, their average height is about 1.8 m with a body weight of 50 kg. Females give birth while standing, and despite falling from a 2-meter height, the giraffe gets to its feet within an hour and begins to run on its first birthday.
Giraffes reach gigantic growth by the age of 6: adult males grow to 5.5 - 6.1 m with a body weight of 900 to 1200 kg. A third of the animals' length is the neck, but giraffes were not always like this. Their ancient ancestors had the same massive build, but their necks were much shorter. After a global extinction event, the only remaining giraffe on earth began to elongate its neck as a tool for survival in the face of fierce competition for food. After all, the foliage of trees - what the giraffe eats - grows high above the ground, out of the reach of other animals.
According to another version, the long necks of modern giraffes are the result of ritual fights between males for a female, when rivals butt their heads into each other’s necks. The longer-necked male always wins, becomes interesting to females and, accordingly, produces longer-necked offspring, who have every chance of providing themselves with a complete diet.
Giraffe at a watering hole. What does a giraffe eat?
Dry African savannas are not distinguished by the diversity of flora, but the main source of food for giraffes grows there - Nile acacia, a tree-like shrub, up to 6 m high. The long branches of the plant are densely strewn with feathery leaves and hooked thorns, but this does not prevent giraffes from safely eating their favorite food in huge quantities .
To get enough food, an adult giraffe needs up to 30 kg of green mass per day, and succulent leaves fully satisfy the animals’ need for food and water. The giraffe extends its muscular tongue, up to 45 cm long, deftly wraps it around a branch and plucks leaves, moving its head back. Wherein special structure oral apparatus allow you to feed on thorny branches completely painlessly. And only when there is no food, giraffes have to bend low and pinch the grass.
Giraffe with baby. Giraffes drink rarely, once every few weeks, but they drink about 38 liters of water at once. At a watering hole, animals spread their legs wide and lower their heads low, but begin to drink only after making sure of their safety. Even lions and leopards do not tend to attack adult giraffes; the deadly blows of their front hooves easily smash the head of every enemy. However, up to 50% of young individuals become victims of predators, although females protect their offspring for up to one and a half years.
Giraffes are vulnerable at watering places and during sleep, when they rest standing or lying down, placing their bent neck on their croup. To get enough sleep, these amazing animals need from 10 minutes to 2 hours a day, and the rest of the time giraffes wander leisurely in search of their favorite acacia tree.
In African savannas, a giraffe can live up to 25 years; in zoos, the life of animals increases by another 10 years.
The giraffe lives throughout almost all of sub-Saharan Africa. Appearance This animal is so unusual that it is difficult to confuse it with any other animal. The first question that almost everyone asks is: “How tall is a giraffe?”
This mammal is the tallest of all currently known animals. The height of the giraffe from the ground to the forehead reaches 6 meters! The weight of an adult male exceeds 1 ton. The female is a little lighter.
The height of the giraffe's neck and head separately from the body reaches 3 meters. He has rather expressive eyes, covered with thick eyelashes. The animal's ears are small and narrow.
Both sexes have horns covered with hair on their foreheads. The tallest mammal's coloration varies greatly. Scientists note that no two giraffes have the same color. The spot-shaped pattern is unique, like a fingerprint.
The main color background of the giraffe is yellowish-red. There are chocolate-brown spots on it in a chaotic manner. Young giraffes are always lighter in color than adults. White giraffes are sometimes seen. But this very rare. They live in Kenya and Northern Tanzania.
Giraffe food
It is no coincidence that the height of a giraffe (including its neck and head) is compared to the height of a two-story house. a strange beast - the result of evolution. She is the giraffe's first assistant in getting food. The animal easily gets leaves from wild apricots, acacias and mimosa.
In addition, the giraffe has a rather long tongue - 50 centimeters. Animals rarely eat grass that spreads along the ground. After all, the height of a giraffe (including its neck and head) is 6 meters! This forces him to spread his front legs wide apart, and sometimes even drop to his knees. In approximately this position, a tall animal drinks water from a reservoir. True, a giraffe can go without water for several weeks, replacing it with succulent wet food.
Giraffes in a herd
These animals form herds of 15 to 50 individuals. It is not uncommon for a group of giraffes to team up with zebras, ostriches and antelopes. But this is a short-lived partnership. The growth of a giraffe obliges other tribesmen to bow their heads before it.
Despite their peace-loving nature, giraffes sometimes engage in a kind of duel with each other. But at the end of the fight, the defeated giraffe is not expelled from the herd, as is customary with other animals. The six-meter height of the giraffe (including the neck and head) suggests the awkwardness of the mammal. But in reality, this animal is perfectly adapted to existence in the savannah.
Giraffe facts
Tall growth allows the animal to see far. Giraffes are considered diurnal creatures.
In the morning they feed, and spend the second half of the day in a pleasant doze, periodically chewing cud. At night, giraffes get full sleep. They lie down on the ground, tuck their forelimbs and one of their hind limbs under them.
The head is placed on the other hind limb, extended to the side. In this position, the height of the giraffe, including the head and neck, reaches about 3.5 m. Even in a sitting position, the animal looks tall.
Mating season for giraffes it begins in July and lasts until September. The female's pregnancy lasts about 450 days. A newborn cub weighs approximately 70 kg. The height of the giraffe, including the neck and head, is almost 2 meters. During childbirth, a herd of giraffes surrounds the female tribesman, protecting her from possible danger.
Predators and giraffe
In addition to answering the question “What is the height of a giraffe, including the neck and head?”, you can find out if it has enemies. IN wildlife only lions dare to hunt the tallest animal. Predators manage to defeat a giraffe when they are in a pride.
If a lion alone risks waylaying a giant, he may fail. An employee of one of the national parks witnessed a similar incident. The predator was going to jump on the giraffe's back to bite its cervical vertebrae.
But during the jump, the lion missed and was knocked down by the strongest blows of the giraffe’s hooves right in the chest. Seeing that the lion was not moving, the eyewitness came closer: the predator’s chest was crushed. This is how the peace-loving giraffe was able to fend for itself!
It's interesting that people mostly ask, "How tall is a giraffe?" But only a few fans of the majestic beast are interested in other information. For example, a giraffe's heart weighs more than 12 kilograms!
With such a mass, it passes through itself about 60 liters of blood. This leads to very high blood pressure in an animal. Therefore, sudden movements when lowering and raising the head are unfavorable for the giraffe.
Despite his high growth, the majestic animal can reach speeds of more than 55 kilometers per hour when galloping. This good opportunity for a giraffe to overtake a racehorse when running short distances. But in fact, the unusual animal moves imposingly, moving both front and hind limbs in turn.
By the way, a giraffe’s legs are thin. This allows the animal to move only along flat surface. Interestingly, giraffes can jump over obstacles of 1.5-2 meters.
Scientists believe that the tallest animal is not a nomadic animal. Like many other species, giraffes stay within a clearly defined territory. It has been observed that animals appear anxious outside their territory.
Male giraffes do not tolerate rivals in their zone during the mating season. If the animal notices a competitor, it takes a threatening pose, which is characterized by stretching its head upward and a tense, numb neck. This measure is usually enough for the opponent to leave.
IN as a last resort giraffes butt each other. But such battles are safe. The animals lazily push each other, swaying their long necks. In most cases, the owner manages to drive away the alien giraffe.
Small waterbills are quite frequent guests on the necks of giraffes. They look for larvae of flies and ticks on the skin of giant animals and eat them. Vodoklui - a kind of sanitary aid for the giraffe in
One of the most famous and beloved animals is giraffe. It’s interesting that even those who have never seen him live love him. And it’s definitely worth looking at it at least once in your life.
This is an incredibly graceful animal, elegant and graceful. However, it seems so only at first glance. In fact, the giraffe is simply huge, because its height reaches 6 meters, this tallest animal. And such an animal weighs about a ton, and, it happens, even more. Females are generally smaller.
Of course, the unusualness of this family of giraffes lies, first of all, in its extraordinary neck. Compared to the body, it is simply incredibly long.
But meanwhile, it has only 7 cervical vertebrae, like any other animal that has a regular or even a very short neck. But the giraffe’s neck muscles are very powerful. They are capable of not only holding the head of this beast high above, but also allowing the large, heavy neck to perform any manipulation.
It is believed that no giraffes have the same pattern of spots.
This animal has a very strong and large heart, weighing 12 kg. The work of this organ is not easy, because it is necessary to pump blood to the brain and disperse it throughout the body, and since the brain is far above, it is very important for the giraffe to maintain the required pressure; in this animal it is three times higher than in ordinary person.
With such pressure, the animal could die if the head was suddenly lowered or raised - too much overload. But nature has made the giraffe’s blood very thick and dense, and the animal’s veins are equipped with valves that control the flow of blood.
Giraffes' tongue also unusual. It is too dark in color and can protrude almost half a meter. The animal needs this in order to cling to tree branches that grow especially high.
Located on the head big eyes with thick eyelashes, giraffes have excellent eyesight. He is able to spot other giraffes at a distance of a kilometer. The ears are not large, although the hearing is excellent.
The giraffe's tongue has an unusual color
There is also no need to complain about the sense of smell; it is well developed in the giraffe. On the head there are horns covered with hair. Sometimes you can find a giraffe with two pairs of horns. And some individuals also have a horn - in the middle of the forehead, although, in reality, this is a bone growth that is not a horn.
The legs of these animals are long and thin. Because they have to wear too heavy weight, giraffes can only move on hard and dense surfaces.
Therefore, giraffes cannot tolerate swamps, and even more so rivers. They prefer to move slowly, smoothly, without sudden movements. However, there is no need to think about This animal, as about a lump. Giraffe if necessary, he is able to run at a speed of 55 km/h and make jumps in height of more than 1.8 meters.
The strong body of the animal is covered with uniform, short hair, which has a unique color. Spots are located on a lighter background various shapes and in a chaotic manner. The shape and location of the spots are individual, just like fingerprints on a person’s hand.
Giraffes sleep in this position
But all giraffes do not have spots on their bellies. These amazing creatures live only in Africa. They are especially comfortable in the savannas, which are located in the south and east, below the Sahara.
However, at least real animal world giraffe and comfortable for its residence, the number is constantly falling. To preserve the population, special reserves, reserves, and protected areas are created where the peace of these animals is protected, allowing them to reproduce and live long life in natural conditions.
But giraffe such animal, which people want to see live, and not just on the picture. Therefore, many zoos have these magnificent animals. In captivity, individuals reproduce very well, quickly get used to new conditions and live without feeling any discomfort.
Character and lifestyle of the giraffe
Giraffes rarely live alone. Most often they gather in small groups that can hardly be called herds. Females, for example, can gather in groups of 4 to 30 heads. At the same time, the composition of the group can constantly change.
Giraffes can gather in large herds and small groups
And even in such groups they are not too attached to each other. It is enough for an animal to know that its brothers are grazing next to it, and it is not at all necessary to contact them.
In addition, these giants have few enemies, so there is no need to unite into a strong, reliable herd. Although, when moving in search of food, giraffes can join other herds, for example.
In such herds, it is easier for mothers to defend themselves from or, which rarely attack adult animals, but hunt babies. But after Right place found, the proud leave their companions - antelopes.
There are no leaders or leaders in groups, but older animals still enjoy special authority. Fights also occur when two strong, adult males meet.
The photo shows male giraffes fighting
Their fights involve headbutting the opponent's neck. Usually, great cruelty is not observed, but during the mating season, males become more aggressive.
But even then they do not use kicks, which are considered the most dangerous and are used only when defending against predators. It is known that such a blow can easily split the opponent's skull.
But giraffes are peaceful towards their fellow creatures. In addition, a male who has been defeated can calmly remain in the herd further; no one expels him, as other animals do.
It is believed that giraffes do not make sounds at all. This is not true. These animals have a voice, but it is much lower than the frequencies that the human ear can distinguish.
Giraffes have one more thing amazing property– they sleep less than any animal. They don't sleep more than two hours a day, and that's enough for them. They can sleep standing up, or they can lie down with their head on their torso.
Nutrition
Giraffe artiodactyl, exclusively herbivore. They are ruminants, the same as, and chew their food several times, because they have a four-chambered stomach.
The main diet of the animal is leaves of trees and shrubs. Most of all, gourmets prefer acacia. Males choose the highest branches, while they stretch their necks even more and seem even more majestic.
Females do not strive to visually increase their height; they are content with the vegetation that is located at the level of their body. The animals immediately grab the entire branch with their tongue and pull it into their mouth, stripping off all the leaves. In order to feed themselves, giraffes eat up to 20 hours a day, because they need at least 30 kg.
The food they eat is so rich in juices that giraffes have very little need for water. For weeks, or even months, this large animal can go without drinking. When a giraffe drinks, it can drink about 40 liters at once.
There is no such amount of water at the top, so when drinking, the animal is forced to bend its neck very low and spread its front legs wide apart. This is the most inconvenient and vulnerable pose, it is in this position that the giraffe is clumsy and clumsy.
To get drunk, the giraffe has to take the most vulnerable pose
Therefore, he starts drinking only in full confidence that there is no danger nearby. By the way, this is why giraffes do not like to nibble grass.
Reproduction and lifespan
The mating season and mating itself falls during the rainy season. But the birth itself most often occurs from May to August, that is, during the months of drought. The female giraffe's pregnancy lasts more than a year- 457 days, but the baby is born already about 2 meters tall. The female brings one cub, rarely, but twins can also be born.
Within 15 minutes after birth, the baby rises to its feet and begins to feed on mother's milk. At this time, they are completely defenseless, so they are forced to hide throughout the first week after birth.
Interestingly, after 3-4 weeks of birth, giraffes begin to separate from their calves, leaving them in the care of other adult females. The mother can go 200 meters from the herd and return only in the evening to feed the baby.
This continues until the cubs are able to accompany the mother. The babies grow up quickly, but will be with the female for 12-16 months. True, young males separate from their mother at 12-14 months of age.
They begin to live alone until they become strong, sexually mature males. And sexual maturity in males occurs at 4-5 years. However, giraffes begin to mate only after they are 7 years old.
Females, most often, remain in the herd. They become sexually mature at 3-4 years, however, they do not rush to become mothers for at least a year. These interesting animals live in the wild for up to 25 years. Even in captivity, in specially created conditions, under the supervision of veterinarians, the life expectancy of these beauties did not exceed a record 28 years.
The giraffe is a mammal from the order Artiodactyls. The giraffe is the tallest animal on the planet. The giraffe is an intelligent and peace-loving animal that has been familiar to us since childhood. In this article you will find a photo and description of a giraffe, and also learn a lot of interesting things about this unique and wonderful animal.
Description of a giraffe or what does a giraffe look like?
The description of the giraffe can begin first of all with its growth. The giraffe looks very tall. After all, the giraffe is the record holder in the animal world for height and is one of the largest animals. The giraffe grows up to 6 meters in height. The weight of a giraffe is 1 ton. Male giraffes are taller than females. In addition, females weigh slightly less.
The giraffe's height is 1/3 of its neck, which is unusually long and slender. The giraffe's neck has 7 cervical vertebrae. Many other mammals have the same number of vertebrae, even with short necks, it’s just that the giraffe’s vertebrae are elongated. The giraffe's neck is unusually strong, as it has strong muscles that allow it to hold its head and maneuver well.
Since giraffes are tall and have a long neck, their circulatory system works under increased stress. Therefore, giraffes have a very strong heart. The giraffe's heart weighs 12 kg and passes 60 liters of blood per minute, creating a pressure 3 times higher than that of a human.
But even such a strong heart of a giraffe cannot withstand overload if the animal suddenly lowers and raises its head. Nature made sure that such stress did not have dire consequences and made the giraffe’s blood thicker. In addition, it contains 2 times more blood cells than a person. The giraffe also has special valves that help keep the pressure in the main artery at the same level.
The giraffe looks unusual not only because of its height. The giraffe's strong body is covered with short hair. The color of the giraffe's coat adds to the uniqueness of the giraffe's appearance. The fur pattern of each giraffe is formed by a unique pattern of dark spots that stand out against the background light shade base color. This pattern is absolutely unique, like a human fingerprint. From below the giraffe's body is more light color and has no stains. Young individuals are lighter in color than older ones.
The giraffe looks funny, because its head with small ears has two horns covered with hair. Both sexes have horns. Females have thinner horns and have tassels. In males they are thicker and the coat is smoother. Occasionally, giraffes have two pairs of horns. Giraffes often have a convex bone growth on their forehead that looks like a horn. The giraffe looks charming, because its huge black eyes have thick eyelashes. The giraffe has a thin a long tail, with a black tassel at the end and a small short mane on the neck.
Giraffes have good eyesight, hearing and smell; such abilities help them spot danger in time. And of course, the large growth of giraffes allows you to have good review terrain. Giraffes can see each other at a distance of up to a kilometer. The giraffe's tongue is dark in color, often with a purple tint. The giraffe's tongue is 45 cm long and helps the animal grab branches. The giraffe's long neck allows it to reach the highest crowns.
The giraffe's legs are strong and high, with the front ones being longer than the back ones. Giraffes run fast. If necessary, the giraffe can gallop at a speed of up to 55 km/h. Thus, the animal giraffe can outrun a racehorse in short distances. But most often, giraffes move slowly, first moving their two right hooves, then both left ones. When walking this way, the giraffe's speed is up to 7 km/hour.
Since the giraffe has a lot of weight and thin legs, it moves only on a hard surface. Therefore, the animal giraffe avoids swampy areas. Rivers are almost insurmountable for giraffes. It is noteworthy that these huge animals can jump over barriers up to 180 cm high.
Currently there are 4 species of giraffes and 9 subspecies. They all differ in the pattern of their fur and the color of their spots. Giraffe species are divided into: southern giraffes, Masai giraffes, reticulated giraffes and northern giraffes.
Modern giraffe subspecies include the Nubian giraffe, West African giraffe, Kordofan giraffe, reticulated giraffe, Ugandan or Rothschild's giraffe, Masai giraffe, Thorneycroft's giraffe, Angolan giraffe and South African giraffe.
Where do giraffes live and how?
Giraffes live in Africa, living in its arid parts. Today, giraffes live south and southeast of the Sahara. Giraffes live in savannas and woodlands, primarily in Eastern and Southern Africa.
In the 20th century, the number of giraffes declined significantly due to uncontrolled hunting, various diseases and destruction natural conditions a habitat. Today greatest number giraffes live in protected areas of national parks. Giraffes are one of the few animals that feel good in captivity and regularly bear offspring.
Giraffes live practically without sleep; among all mammals they have the least need for it. A giraffe sleeps on average no more than 2 hours a day. But sometimes a 10-minute nap is enough for them. Surely everyone has wondered how giraffes sleep? They're so tall. Giraffes sleep both standing and lying down. In a lying position, a sleeping giraffe bends its neck, tucks its legs and rests its head on its rump.
Giraffes live in small herds or alone. There is no strict loyalty in herds. Everyone can freely leave the herd or also freely move to another. The size of the herd varies depending on the season and can range from 4 to 32 individuals. A herd of giraffes can consist of individuals of different sexes or of the same sex. In search of food, the giraffe animal can travel up to 100 km². Quite often you can see giraffes moving along with herds of antelope or zebra. This way they are safer.
The hierarchy and social behavior of giraffes in a herd are not yet fully understood. Although giraffes do not have a main leader, older and stronger males have an advantage over others. Also in herds where there are only females, the oldest female takes the lead. When two adult males meet, skirmishes often occur between them. In a duel, they try to headbutt each other in the neck. Despite this, defeated males are not expelled from the herd, unlike other social animals, such as wolves.
The mating season is also often accompanied by fights between males, but at this time they become much more aggressive. Opponents can sort things out near a tree, with each trying to press the opponent to the trunk and deliver a headbutt to the neck. Fortunately, giraffes do not use their main weapon on each other - dangerous blows with their front hooves. At least such cases have not been observed. They usually defend themselves against predators by kicking their hooves. The winner does not pursue the defeated male.
Giraffes are mistakenly considered voiceless animals. They just communicate with each other low frequencies, which are indistinguishable to human hearing. However, giraffes do make sounds that we can hear. They can snort, whistle and roar, thus alerting their relatives in case of danger, as well as when searching for lost cubs.
What do giraffes eat?
The giraffe is a herbivore animal. That's why giraffes eat exclusively plant foods. Due to their body structure and physiology, giraffes eat the foliage of tree crowns located at considerable heights, where there is no competition. Giraffes eat acacia, giving the greatest preference to this tree.
Giraffe grabs a branch with its long tongue and pulls it to his mouth to pluck the leaves, while pulling his head back. The acacia tree has thorny branches, but the giraffe's tongue and lips are designed in such a way that they allow feeding without damage.
A giraffe eats up to 30 kg of food per day, spending most time. In times of famine, 7 kg of food is enough for a giraffe. It is curious that by the way giraffes eat, you can determine the sex of the animal from a distance. Male giraffes eat mainly very high-growing leaves, while they strongly stretch their necks and throw back their heads. Female giraffes eat leaves that grow at the level of their body, so they usually lower their necks slightly.
The animal giraffe can do without water even longer than a camel. After all, food completely covers his need for liquid. However, if a giraffe has the opportunity to drink, it can drink up to 38 liters of water at a time. To drink water, a giraffe must spread its front legs wide apart and lower its head quite low. This position makes the giraffe clumsy and vulnerable to predators, so giraffes drink only when they are confident in their safety. In the same position, giraffes pluck grass when hungry.
Giraffes are polygamous animals. Females become capable of reproduction at the age of 3-4 years, but produce offspring for the first time by 5 years. In males, the breeding season begins at the age of 4-5 years. Young males find it difficult to compete with older males. Therefore, young animals can acquire offspring only by the age of 7 years.
The mating season for giraffes is from July to September. The duration of a giraffe's pregnancy is 14-15 months. Usually only one giraffe calf is born. Giraffes give birth standing up, which means that a giraffe calf falls from a height of about 2 meters at birth. There is no need to worry; the baby giraffe does not suffer any injuries from the fall.
A born giraffe calf is 180 cm tall and weighs 50 kg. An hour after birth, the cub gets on its feet, and after a few more hours it can run. Giraffe cubs are only allowed into the general herd after a few weeks, at which time they begin to browse the grass. But the baby giraffe will feed on mother’s milk until almost 1 year of age.
Giraffes have nurseries to which females send their young. In this way, mothers may separate from their young to find food and water. Monitoring duty over a group of cubs occurs between mothers in turns.
Giraffe cubs are born without horns, but where they appear there is a tuft of dark hair, under which there is cartilage. As they grow older, the cartilages harden into horns that begin to grow. Tufts of black fur at the base of the horns remain with the cub for several years, after which they disappear.
Giraffe cubs grow quickly, they are mobile and very active. Until approximately 1.5 years of age, the giraffe calf remains with its mother. After which he begins an independent life. Males usually leave their native herd, but females almost always remain in it. In the wild, giraffes live for about 25 years, and in captivity up to 35 years.
Due to its considerable size, the animal giraffe has practically no natural enemies. Giraffes defend themselves from predators by striking their front hooves. Such a blow can break the skull of any predator, although there are cases of predators defeating giraffes.
Few predators are willing to take risks, so attacks on adults are rare. Predators most often attack young animals. Despite the mother's protection, up to 50% of young giraffes become prey to lions, leopards, hyenas and wild dogs.
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The giraffe is a mammal from the order of artiodactyls, the giraffidae family. It is the tallest land animal on the planet.
Giraffe habitat
Animals live in savannas and dry forests of the Southern and East Africa located south and southeast of the Sahara. Inhabit the savannah, open wooded areas acacias, subtropical and tropical fields with trees and shrubs. However, when food is scarce, they move to areas with denser vegetation.
The largest populations of giraffes today live only in reserves and nature reserves.
Appearance of a giraffe
Giraffe– the most high mammals in the world.
Male giraffes reach a height of up to 5.5-6.1 m (about 1/3 of the length is the neck) and weigh up to 900–1200 kg. Females tend to be slightly smaller and lighter – average height 4.3 m and weigh up to 1180 kg.
The giraffe has a long neck with a short, straight mane. The legs are also long. The giraffe's neck consists of the same number of cervical vertebrae as those of most mammals, including humans, but they are many larger and are connected by joints to improve flexibility.
The body color is yellow with brown spots, which helps them blend harmoniously into the color scheme of their surroundings. Each giraffe has unique spots, like human fingerprints.
On the head there are two woolen horns, each 20 centimeters long.
The giraffe's eyes are black, with very thick eyelashes. The giraffe also has a small tail relative to its body size, which resembles a brush.
Giraffe lifestyle and nutrition
Giraffes are exclusively herbivores. Their body structure and physiology allow them to feed on the foliage of tree crowns - at a height where they have no competitors. The preferred tree is acacia. The giraffe wraps its long tongue around the branch, pulls it towards its mouth and plucks the leaves, pulling its head back. The tongue and lips are designed in such a way that they are not damaged, despite the thorny branches. Every day a giraffe consumes about 30 kg of food and spends 16 to 20 hours a day eating. It is interesting that by the technique of a giraffe’s collection of food, one can determine its gender from a distance. Males mainly eat leaves located very high, while they stretch out strongly and throw back their heads so that it seems to be an extension of their neck. Females feed on leaves growing at the level of their body, so they usually lower their necks a little.
The need for fluid is met mainly by food, which is why the giraffe can go without drinking for weeks. At a watering hole, a giraffe can drink up to 38 liters of water at a time. When drinking, animals are forced to spread their front legs wide in order to lower their head low enough. In this position, being clumsy, they are especially vulnerable to predators, and therefore drink only after making sure of their safety. Giraffes nibble grass in the same way, but this only happens during times of famine.
Of all mammals, giraffes have one of the least sleep requirements, ranging from 10 minutes to 2 hours per night; On average, giraffes sleep 1.9 hours per day. Giraffes sleep both standing and lying down, with their necks bent and their heads resting on their rumps.
Giraffes live alone or in small herds that are not particularly attached to each other. The area they travel around in search of food can be up to 100 km². Social behavior depends on gender: females adhere to herds of 4 to 32 individuals, in which the composition changes from time to time.
Giraffes do not have a single leader, but older and stronger males have an advantage over others. Young males also form small separate groups until they reach sexual maturity, after which they begin to live alone.
Giraffes often move with herds of antelopes or zebras, as this gives them greater safety.
When two adult males meet, it often comes down to a ritual duel, in which they stand next to each other and try to headbutt the opponent’s neck. However, unlike other social animals, defeated male giraffes are not expelled from the herd.
It is widely believed that giraffes are voiceless animals. However, in reality they communicate with each other at frequencies below 20 Hz, inaudible to the human ear.
Giraffes usually move at a smooth pace, ambling (first both right legs are in motion, then both left legs). Only in cases of extreme necessity do giraffes switch to an awkward, seemingly slow gallop, but they maintain such a gait for no more than 2–3 minutes. A galloping giraffe constantly nods deeply, bowing with each jump, since it can simultaneously lift both front legs off the ground, only by throwing its neck and head far back and thus shifting its center of gravity. The animal looks extremely clumsy while running, but reaches speeds of up to 50 km/h.
Giraffe breeding
Giraffes do not have a specific breeding season. Adult males move from one group to another, sniffing females and determining their readiness for mating. The largest and strongest males participate in reproduction. Pregnancy in giraffes lasts more than a year (15 months), after which one calf is born; twins are extremely rare. The baby, about two meters tall and weighing 70 kg, falls at birth from a height of two meters, since the female does not lie down during childbirth. She can retire behind the trees, but does not stray far from the group. Like all ungulates, a newborn tries to stand on its legs a few minutes after birth, and half an hour later it tastes its mother’s milk. The baby giraffe develops quickly, and after a week he is already running and jumping no worse than an adult animal. At the age of two weeks, the baby begins to try plant foods, but the mother feeds him milk for a whole year. She selflessly protects the cub from lions and hyenas, but, nevertheless, about half of the giraffes become prey to predators during the first year of life.
The cubs leave their mother at about 16 months of age.
A female giraffe gives birth to her first calf when she is 5 years old. If conditions are favorable, she will produce offspring every 18 months for up to 20 years. Males begin to reproduce at an older age.
In captivity, giraffes live up to 25 years (the record is 28 years), in the wild - less.
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