Giraffe[1]
A Maasai giraffe in Mikumi National Park, Tanzania
Conservation status
Least Concern (IUCN 3.1)[2]
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Mammalia
Order:	Artiodactyla
Family:	Giraffidae
Genus:	Giraffa
Species:	G. camelopardalis
Binomial name
Giraffa camelopardalis (Linnaeus, 1758)
Subspecies
9, see text
Range map of the giraffe divided by subspecies.

The giraffe (Giraffa camelopardalis) is an African even-toed ungulate mammal, the tallest living terrestrial animal and the largest ruminant. Its specific name refers to its camel-like face and and the patches of color on its fur, which bear a vague resemblance to a leopard's spots. The giraffe is noted for its extremely long neck and legs, as well as its horn-like ossicones. It stands 5–6 m (16–20 ft) tall and has an average weight of 1,600 kg (3,500 lb) for males and 830 kg (1,800 lb) for females. It is classified under the family Giraffidae, along with its closest extant relative, the okapi. There are nine subspecies, which are distinguished by their coat patterns.

The giraffe's scattered range extends from Chad in the north to South Africa in the south, and from Niger in the west to Somalia in the east. Giraffes usually inhabit savannas, grasslands, and open woodlands. Their primary food source is acacia leaves, which they can browse at heights that most other herbivores cannot reach. Giraffes are preyed on by lions, and calves are also targeted by leopards, spotted hyenas and wild dogs. Adult giraffes do not have strong social bonds, though they do gather in loose aggregations if they happen to be moving in the same general direction. Males establish social hierarchies through "necking", which are combat bouts where the neck is used as a weapon. Dominant males gain mating access to females, who bear the sole responsibility for raising the young.

The giraffe has intrigued various cultures, both ancient and modern, for its peculiar appearance, and has often been featured in paintings, books and cartoons. It is classified by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) as Least Concern, but has been extirpated from many parts of its former range, and some subspecies are classified as Endangered. Nevertheless, giraffes are still found in numerous game reserves.

Etymology[link]

The name giraffe has its earliest known origins in the Arabic word zarafa (زرافہ), perhaps from some African language.^[3] The name is translated as "fast-walker".^[4] There were several Middle Eastern spellings such as jarraf, ziraph, and gerfauntz.^[3] It is also possible that the word was derived from the animal's Somali name Geri.^[5] The Italian form giraffa arose in the 1590s.^[3] The modern English form developed around 1600 from the French girafe.^[3] The species name camelopardalis is a Latin word.^[6] Kameelperd is also the name for the species in Afrikaans.^[7] Other African names for the giraffe include Ekorii (Ateso), Kanyiet (Elgon), Nduida (Gikuyu), Tiga (Kalenjin and Luo), Ndwiya (Kamba), Nudululu (Kihehe), Ntegha (Kinyaturu), Ondere (Lugbara), Etiika (Luhya), Kuri (Ma'di), Oloodo-kirragata or Olchangito-oodo (Maasai), Lenywa (Meru), Hori (Pare), Lment (Samburu) and Twiga (Swahili and others) in the east;^[8]:313 and Tutwa (Lozi), Nthutlwa (Shangaan), Indlulamitsi (Siswati), Thutlwa (Sotho), Thuda (Venda) and Ndlulamithi (Zulu) in the south.^[7]

Taxonomy and evolution[link]

Mounted Shansitherium skeleton from the Beijing Museum of Natural History

The giraffe is one of only two living species of the family Giraffidae, the other being the okapi. The family was once much more extensive, with over 10 fossil genera described. Giraffids first arose 8 million years ago (mya) in south-central Europe during the Miocene epoch. The superfamily Giraffoidea, together with the family Antilocapridae (whose only extant species is the pronghorn), evolved from the extinct family Palaeomerycidae.^[9] The earliest known giraffid was the deer-like Climacoceras.

While the progressive elongation of the neck and limbs can be found throughout the giraffid lineage, it became more pronounced in genera such as Giraffokeryx, Palaeotragus (possible ancestor of the okapi), Samotherium and Bohlinia.^[9] Bohlinia entered China and northern India in response to climate change. From here, the genus Giraffa evolved and, around 7 mya, entered Africa. Further climate changes caused the extinction of the Asian giraffes, while the African ones survived and radiated into several new species. G. camelopardalis arose around 1 mya in eastern Africa during the Pleistocene.^[9] Some biologists suggest that the modern giraffe descended from G. jumae;^[10] others find G. gracilis a more likely candidate.^[9] It is believed that the main driver for the evolution of the giraffes was the change from extensive forests to more open habitats, which began 8 mya.^[9]

The giraffe was one of the many species first described by Carl Linnaeus in 1758. He gave it the binomial name Cervus camelopardalis. Morten Thrane Brünnich classified the genus Giraffa in 1772.^[11] In the early 19th century, Jean-Baptiste Lamarck believed that the giraffe's long neck was an "acquired characteristic", developed as generations of ancestral giraffes strived to reach the leaves of tall trees.^[12] This theory was eventually rejected, and scientists now believe that the giraffe's neck arose through Darwinian natural selection—that ancestral giraffes with long necks thereby had a competitive advantage that better enabled them to reproduce and pass on their genes.^[12]

Subspecies[link]

"Approximate geographic ranges, fur patterns and phylogenetic relationships between some giraffe subspecies based on mitochondrial DNA sequences. Colored dots on the map represent sampling localities. The phylogenetic tree is a maximum-likelihood phylogram based on samples from 266 giraffes. Asterisks along branches correspond to node values of more than 90 percent bootstrap support. Stars at branch tips identify paraphyletic haplotypes found in Maasai and Reticulated giraffes".^[13]

Up to nine subspecies of giraffe are recognized (with population estimates as of 2010^[update]):

• G. c. camelopardalis,^[14] the nominate subspecies, is known as the Nubian giraffe. It is found in eastern South Sudan and south-western Ethiopia. Fewer than 250 are thought to remain in the wild, although this number is uncertain.^[15] It is rare in captivity, although a group is kept at Al Ain Zoo in the United Arab Emirates.^[16] In 2003, this group numbered 14.^[17]
• G. c. reticulata,^[14] known as the reticulated^[14] or Somali giraffe, is native to north-eastern Kenya, southern Ethiopia and Somalia. It is estimated that no more than 5,000 remain in the wild,^[15] and based on International Species Information System records, more than 450 are kept in zoos.^[18]
• G. c. angolensis, the Angolan or Namibian giraffe, is found in northern Namibia, south-western Zambia, Botswana and western Zimbabwe. A genetic study on Namibian giraffes suggests that the northern Namib Desert and Etosha National Park populations form a separate subspecies.^[19] It is estimated that no more than 20,000 remain in the wild;^[15] and approximately 20 are kept in zoos.^[18]
• G. c. antiquorum,^[14] the Kordofan giraffe, has a distribution which includes southern Chad, the Central African Republic, northern Cameroon and north-eastern DR Congo. Populations in Cameroon were formerly included in G. c. peralta, but this was incorrect.^[20] No more than 3,000 are believed to remain in the wild.^[15] Considerable confusion has existed over the status of this subspecies and G. c. peralta in zoos. In 2007 it was shown that all alleged G. c. peralta in European zoos were, in fact, G. c. antiquorum.^[20] With this correction approximately 65 are kept in zoos.^[18]
• G. c. tippelskirchi,^[14] known as the Maasai giraffe^[14] or Kilimanjaro giraffe, can be found in central and southern Kenya and in Tanzania. It is estimated that no more than 40,000 remain in the wild,^[15] and approximately 100 are kept in zoos.^[18]
• G. c. rothschildi^[14] is known variously as the Rothschild giraffe,^[14] Baringo giraffe or Ugandan giraffe. Its range includes parts of Uganda and Kenya.^[2] Its presence in South Sudan is uncertain.^[21] Fewer than 700 are believed to remain in the wild,^[15] and more than 450 are kept in zoos.^[18]
• G. c. giraffa, the South African giraffe, is found in northern South Africa, southern Botswana, southern Zimbabwe and south-western Mozambique. It is estimated that no more than 12,000 remain in the wild,^[15] and approximately 45 are kept in zoos.^[18]
• G. c. thornicrofti,^[14] called the Thornicroft giraffe^[14] or Rhodesian giraffe, is restricted to the Luangwa Valley in eastern Zambia. No more than 1,500 remain in the wild,^[15] with none kept in zoos.^[18]
• G. c. peralta,^[14] commonly known as the West African giraffe,^[14] Niger giraffe^[22] or Nigerian giraffe,^[22] has a lighter coat pelage than other subspecies.^[8]:322 It is endemic to south-western Niger.^[2] Fewer than 220 individuals remain in the wild.^[15] Giraffes in Cameroon were formerly believed to belong to this subspecies, but are actually G. c. antiquorum.^[20] This error resulted in some confusion over its status in zoos, but in 2007 it was established that all "G. c. peralta" kept in European zoos actually are G. c. antiquorum.^[20]

The endangered West African giraffe

Giraffe subspecies are distinguished by their coat patterns. The reticulated and Maasai giraffe represent two extremes of giraffe patch shapes. The former has well-defined geometric patches while the latter has jagged star-like ones. Giraffes from the northern half of the species' range have patches more like the reticulated giraffe while those from the south are more like the Maasai giraffe^[8]:317— the Angolan and South African giraffe at a lesser extant.^[23] There are also differences in the width of the lines separating the patches. The West African giraffe has thick lines while the Nubian and reticulated giraffe have thin ones.^[8]:321-22

A 2007 study on the genetics of six subspecies—the West African, Rothschild, reticulated, Maasai, Angolan and South African giraffe—suggests that they may in fact be separate species. The study deduced from genetic drift in nuclear and mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) that giraffes from these populations are reproductively isolated and rarely interbreed, even though no natural obstacles block their mutual access.^[13] Even adjacent populations of Rothschild, reticulated and Maasai giraffes are reproductively isolated. The Maasai giraffe may also consist of a few species separated by the Rift Valley. Reticulated and Maasai giraffes have the highest mtDNA diversity, which is consistent with the fact that giraffes originated in eastern Africa. Populations further north evolved from the former while those to the south evolved from the latter. Giraffes appear to select mates of the same coat type, which are imprinted on them as calves.^[13] The implications of these findings for the conservation of giraffes were summarised by David Brown, lead author of the study, who told BBC News: "Lumping all giraffes into one species obscures the reality that some kinds of giraffe are on the brink. Some of these populations number only a few hundred individuals and need immediate protection."^[24]

Appearance and anatomy[link]

Closeup of the head of a giraffe at the Melbourne Zoo

Giraffe skeleton on display at the Museum of Osteology, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma

Fully grown giraffes stand 5–6 m (16–20 ft) tall, with males taller than females.^[11] The average weight is 1,600 kg (3,500 lb) for an adult male and 830 kg (1,800 lb) for an adult female.^[25] Despite its long neck and legs, the giraffe's body is relatively short.^[26]:66 Located at both sides of the head, the giraffe's large, bulging eyes give it good all-round vision from its great height.^[27]:25 Giraffes see in color^[27]:26 and their senses of hearing and smell are also sharp.^[12] The animal can close its muscular nostrils to protect against sandstorms and ants.^[27]:27 The giraffe's prehensile tongue is about 50 cm (20 in) long. It is purplish-black in color, perhaps to protect against sunburn, and is useful for grasping foliage as well as for grooming and cleaning the animal's nose.^[27]:27 The upper lip of the giraffe is also prehensile and useful when foraging. The lips, tongue and inside of the mouth are covered in papillae to protect against thorns.^[11]

The coat has dark blotches or patches (which can be orange, chestnut, brown or nearly black on color^[12]) separated by light hair (usually white or cream in color^[12]). Each individual giraffe has a unique coat pattern.^[23] The coat pattern serves as camouflage, allowing it to blend in the light and shade patterns of savanna woodlands.^[9][14] The skin underneath the dark areas may serve as windows for thermoregulation, being sites for complex blood vessel systems and large sweat glands.^[28] The skin of a giraffe is mostly gray.^[25] It is also thick and allows them to run through thorn bush without being punctured.^[27]:34 Their fur may serve as a chemical defence, as it is full of parasite repellents that give the animal a characteristic scent. There are at least eleven main aromatic chemicals in the fur, although indole and 3-methylindole are responsible for most of the smell. Because the males have a stronger odor than the females, it is suspected that it also has a sexual function.^[29] Along the animal's neck is a mane made of short, erect hairs.^[11] The 1 m (3.3 ft) tail ends in a long, dark tuft of hair and is used as a defense against insects.^[27]:36

Skull and ossicones[link]

Both sexes have prominent horn-like structures called ossicones, which are formed from ossified cartilage, covered in skin and fused to the skull at the parietal bones.^[23] Being vascularized, the ossicones may have a role in thermoregulation.^[28] Appearance is a reliable guide to the sex or age of a giraffe: the ossicones of females and young are thin and display tufts of hair on top, whereas those of adult males end in knobs and tend to be bald on top.^[23] There is also a median lump, which is more prominent in males, at the front of the skull.^[11] Males develop calcium deposits that form bumps on their skulls as they age.^[12] A giraffe's skull is lightened by multiple sinuses.^[26]:70 However, as males age, their skulls become heavier and more club-like, helping them become more dominant in combat.^[23] The upper jaw has a grooved palate and lacks front teeth.^[27]:26 The surface of the giraffe's molars are rougher than those of some other mammals.^[27]:27

Legs, locomotion and posture[link]

The front legs of a giraffe are slightly longer than its hind legs. The radius and ulna of the front legs are articulated by the carpus, which, while structurally equivalent to the human wrist, functions as a knee.^[30] The foot of the giraffe reaches a diameter of 30 cm (12 in), and the hoof is 15 cm (5.9 in) high in males and 10 cm (3.9 in) in females.^[27]:36 The rear of each hoof is low and the fetlock is close to the ground, allowing the foot to support the animal's weight.^[11] Giraffes lack dewclaws and interdigital glands. The giraffe's pelvis, though relatively short, has an ilium that is outspread at the upper ends.^[11]

A giraffe has only two gaits: walking and galloping. Walking is done by moving the legs on one side of the body at the same time, then doing the same on the other side.^[23] When galloping, the hind legs move around the front legs before the latter move forward,^[12] and the tail will curl up.^[23] The animal relies on the forward and backward motions of its head and neck to maintain balance and the counter momentum while galloping.^[8]:327–29 The giraffe can reach a sprint speed of up to 60 km/h (37 mph),^[31] and can sustain 50 km/h (31 mph) for several kilometers.^[32]

A giraffe rests by lying with its body on top of its folded legs.^[8]:329 To lie down, the animal kneels on its front legs and then lowers the rest of its body. To get back up, it first gets on its knees and spreads its hind legs to raise its hindquarters. It then straightens its front legs. With each step, the animal swings its head.^[27]:31 The giraffe sleeps intermittently around 4.6 hours per day, mostly at night.^[33] It usually sleeps lying down, however, standing sleeps have been recorded, particularly in older individuals. Intermittent short "deep sleep" phases while lying are characterized by the giraffe bending its neck backwards and resting its head on the hip or thigh, a position believed to indicate paradoxical sleep.^[33] If the giraffe wants to bend down to drink, it either spreads its front legs or bends its knees.^[23] Giraffes would probably not be competent swimmers as their long legs would be highly cumbersome in the water,^[34] although they could possibly float.^[35] When swimming, the thorax would be weighed down by the front legs, making it difficult for the animal to move its neck and legs in harmony^[34][35] or keep its head above the surface.^[34]

Neck[link]

An adult male giraffe feeding high up on an acacia

The giraffe has an extremely elongated neck, which can be up to 2 m (6 ft 7 in) in length, accounting for much of the animal's vertical height.^[27]:29 The long neck results from a disproportionate lengthening of the cervical vertebrae, not from the addition of more vertebrae. Each cervical vertebra is over 28 cm (11 in) long.^[26]:71 They comprise 52–54 percent of the giraffe's vertebral column, compared with the 27–33 percent typical of similar large ungulates, including the giraffe’s closest living relative, the okapi.^[36] This elongation largely takes place after birth, as giraffe mothers would have a difficult time giving birth to young with the same neck proportions as adults.^[37] The giraffe's head and neck are held up by large muscles and a nuchal ligament, which are anchored by long dorsal spines on the anterior thoracic vertebrae, giving the animal a hump.^[11]

The giraffe's neck vertebrae have ball and socket joints.^[26]:71 In particular, the atlas–axis joint (C1 and C2) allows the animal to tilt its head vertically and reach more branches with the tongue.^[27]:29 The point of articulation between the cervical and thoracic vertebrae of giraffes is shifted to lie between the first and second thoracic vertebrae (T1 and T2), unlike most other ruminants where the articulation is between the seventh cervical vertebra (C7) and T1.^[36][37] This allows C7 to contribute directly to increased neck length and has given rise to the suggestion that T1 is actually C8, and that giraffes have added an extra cervical vertebra.^[38] However, this proposition is not generally accepted, as T1 has other morphological features, such as an articulating rib, deemed diagnostic of thoracic vertebrae, and because exceptions to the mammalian limit of seven cervical vertebrae are generally characterized by increased neurological anomalies and maladies.^[36]

There are two main hypotheses regarding the evolutionary origin and maintenance of elongation in giraffe necks.^[39] The "competing browsers hypothesis" was originally suggested by Charles Darwin and only challenged recently. It suggests that competitive pressure from smaller browsers, such as kudu, steenbok and impala, encouraged the elongation of the neck, as it enabled giraffes to reach food that competitors could not. This advantage is real, as giraffes can and do feed up to 4.5 m (15 ft) high, while even quite large competitors, such as kudu, can only feed up to about 2 m (6 ft 7 in) high.^[40] There is also research suggesting that browsing competition is intense at lower levels, and giraffes feed more efficiently (gaining more leaf biomass with each mouthful) high in the canopy.^[41][42] However, scientists disagree about just how much time giraffes spend feeding at levels beyond the reach of other browsers.^{[10][39][40][43]}

The other main theory, the sexual selection hypothesis, proposes that the long necks evolved as a secondary sexual characteristic, giving males an advantage in "necking" contests (see below) to establish dominance and obtain access to sexually receptive females.^[10] In support of this theory, necks are longer and heavier for males than females of the same age,^[10][39] and the former do not employ other forms of combat.^[10] However, one objection is that it fails to explain why female giraffes also have long necks.^[44]

Internal systems[link]

Giraffe bending down to drink. The animal's rete mirabile prevents excess blood flow to the brain when the neck is lowered.

In mammals, the left recurrent laryngeal nerve is longer than the right; in the giraffe it is over 30 cm (12 in) longer. These nerves are longer in the giraffe than in any other living animal;^[45] the left nerve is over 2 m (6 ft 7 in) long.^[46] Each nerve cell in this path begins in the brainstem and passes down the neck along the vagus nerve, then branches off into the recurrent laryngeal nerve which passes back up the neck to the larynx. Thus, these nerve cells have a length of nearly 5 m (16 ft) in the largest giraffes.^[45] The structure of a giraffe's brain resembles that of domestic cattle.^[27]:31 The shape of the skeleton gives the giraffe a small lung volume relative to its mass.^[47] Its long neck gives it a large amount of dead space, in spite of its narrow windpipe. These factors increase the resistance to airflow. Nevertheless, the animal can still supply enough oxygen to its tissues.^[47]

The circulatory system of the giraffe has several adaptations for its great height. Its heart, which can weigh more than 25 lb (11 kg) and measures about 2 ft (61 cm) long, must generate approximately double the blood pressure required for a human to maintain blood flow to the brain.^[12] Giraffes have usually high heart rates for their size, at 150 beats per minute.^[26]:76 In the upper neck, the rete mirabile prevents excess blood flow to the brain when the giraffe lowers its head.^[14] The jugular veins also contain several (most commonly seven) valves to prevent blood flowing back into the head from the inferior vena cava and right atrium while the head is lowered.^[48] Conversely, the blood vessels in the lower legs are under great pressure (because of the weight of fluid pressing down on them). To solve this problem, the giraffe's lower legs have a thick, tight layer of skin, which prevents too much blood from pouring into them.^[14]

Giraffes have oesophageal muscles that are unusually strong to allow regurgitation of food from the stomach up the neck and into the mouth for rumination.^[26]:78 They have four chambered stomachs, as in all ruminants, and the first chamber has adapted to their specialized diet.^[11] The giraffe's intestines measure up to 80 m (260 ft) in length^[11] and have a relatively small ratio of small to large intestine.^[49] The liver of the giraffe is small and compact.^[26]:76 A gallbladder is generally present during fetal life, but it may disappear before birth.^[50][11][51]

Behavior and ecology[link]

Habitat and feeding[link]

Giraffe extending its tongue to feed. Its tongue, lips and palate are tough enough to deal with sharp thorns in trees.

Giraffes usually inhabit savannas, grasslands and open woodlands. They prefer Acacia, Commiphora, Combretum and open Terminalia woodlands over denser environments like Brachystegia woodlands.^[8]:322 The Angolan giraffe can be found in desert environments.^[52] Giraffes browse on the twigs of trees, preferring trees of genera Acacia, Commiphora and Terminalia,^[4] which are important sources of calcium and protein to sustain the giraffe's growth rate.^[9] They also feed on shrubs, grass and fruit.^[8]:324 A giraffe eats around 34 kg (75 lb) of foliage daily.^[23] When stressed, giraffes may chew the bark off branches. Although herbivorous, the giraffe has been known to visit carcasses and lick dried meat off bones.^[8]:325

During the wet season, food is abundant and giraffes are more spread out, while during the dry season, they gather around the remaining evergreen trees and bushes.^[4] Mothers tend to feed in open areas, presumably to make it easier to detect predators, although this may reduce their feeding efficiency.^[43] As a ruminant, the giraffe first chews its food, then swallows it for processing and then visibly passes the half-digested cud up the neck and back into the mouth to chew again.^[26]:78-79 The giraffe requires less food than many other herbivores, because the foliage it eats has more concentrated nutrients and it has a more efficient digestive system.^[4] The animal's feces come in the form of small pellets.^[11] It is common for a giraffe to salivate while feeding.^[27]:27 When it has access to water, a giraffe drinks at intervals no longer than three days.^[23]

Giraffes have a great effect on the trees that they feed on, delaying the growth of young trees for some years and giving "waistlines" to trees that are too tall.^[23] Feeding is at its highest during the first and last hours of daytime. Between these hours, giraffes mostly stand and ruminate. Rumination is the dominant activity during the night, when it is mostly done lying down.^[23]

Social life and breeding habits[link]

Male giraffe mounting a female. Only dominant males are generally able to mate.

While giraffes are usually found in groups, the composition of these groups tends to be open and ever-changing.^[53] They have few strong social bonds, and aggregations usually change members every few hours. For research purposes, a "group" has been defined as "a collection of individuals that are less than a kilometre apart and moving in the same general direction."^[54] The number of giraffes in a group can range up to 32 individuals.^[53] The most stable giraffe groups are those made of mothers and their young,^[54] which can last weeks or months.^[55] Social cohesion in these groups is maintained by the bonds formed between calves.^[54][8]:330 Mixed-sex groups made of adult females and young males are also known to occur.^[54] Subadult males are particularly social and will engage in playfights. However, as they get older males become more solitary.^[55] Giraffes are not territorial,^[11] but they have home ranges.^[23] Male giraffes occasionally wander far from areas that they normally frequent.^[8]:329

Reproduction is broadly polygamous: a few older males mate with the fertile females. Male giraffes assess female fertility by tasting the female's urine to detect estrus, in a multi-step process known as the Flehmen response.^[55][54] Males prefer young adult females over juveniles and older adults.^[54] Once an estrous female is detected, the male will attempt to court her. During courtship, dominant males will keep subordinate ones at bay.^[55] During copulation, the male stands on its hind legs with its head held up and its front legs resting on the female's sides.^[23] Homosexual interactions have also been observed in giraffes. In one study, up to 94 percent of observed mounting incidents took place between males. The proportion of same-sex activities varied from 30–75 percent. Only one percent of same-sex mounting incidents occurred between females.^[56]

Although generally quiet and non-vocal, giraffes have been heard to communicate using various sounds. During courtship, males emit loud coughs.^[23] Females call their young by bellowing. Calves will emit snorts, bleats, mooing and mewing sounds. Giraffes also snore, hiss, moan and make flute-like sounds,^[23] and they communicate over long distances using infrasound.^[57]

Birthing and parental care[link]

Mother giraffe and calves feeding. It is mostly the females that raise young, and they may gather in nursery herds.

Giraffe gestation lasts 400–460 days, after which a single calf is normally born, although twins occur on rare occasions.^[58] The mother gives birth standing up. The calf comes out head and front legs first, having broken though the fetal membranes, and falls to the ground, severing the umbilical cord.^[11] The mother then grooms the newborn and helps it stand up.^[27]:40 A newborn giraffe is about 1.8 m (6 ft) tall. Within a few hours of birth, the calf can run around and is almost indistinguishable from a one-week-old. However, for the first 1–3 weeks, it spends most of its time hiding;^[59] its coat pattern providing camouflage. The ossicones, which have lain flat while it was in the womb, become erect within a few days.^[23]

Mothers with calves will gather in nursery herds, moving or browsing together. Mothers in such a group may sometimes leave their calves with one female while they forage and drink elsewhere. This is known as a "calving pool".^[59] Adult males play almost no role in raising the young,^[8]:337 although they appear to have friendly interactions.^[54] Calves are at risk of predation, and a mother giraffe will stand over her calf and kick at an approaching predator.^[23] Females watching calving pools will only alert their own young if they detect a disturbance, although the others will take notice and follow.^[59] The bond a mother shares with her calf varies, though it can last until her next calving.^[59] Likewise, calves may suckle for only a month^[8]:335 or as long as a year.^[55][23] Females become sexually mature when they are four years old, while males become mature at four or five years. However, males must wait until they are at least seven years old to gain the opportunity to mate.^[27]:40[23]

Male giraffes will engage in necking to establish dominance.

Necking[link]

Male giraffes use their necks as weapons in combat, a behavior known as "necking".^[60] Necking is used to establish dominance and can occur at low or high intensity. In low intensity necking, the combatants rub and lean against each other. The male that can hold itself more erect wins the bout.^[23] In high intensity necking, the combatants will spread their front legs and swing their necks at each other, attempting to land blows with their ossicones. The contestants will try to dodge each other's blows and then get ready to counter. The power of a blow depends on the weight of the skull and the arc of the swing.^[23] A necking duel can last over half an hour, depending on how well matched the combatants are. The winner will mount his opponent in a show of dominance.^[8]:331–32 Males that are successful in necking have greater reproductive success.^[10]

Mortality and health[link]

Giraffes have an unusually long lifespan compared to other ruminants,^[61] up to 25 years in the wild.^[14] Because of their size, eyesight and powerful kicks, adult giraffes are usually not subject to predation.^[23] However, they can fall prey to lions and are regular prey for them in Kruger National Park.^[62] Nile crocodiles can also be a threat to giraffes when they bend down to drink.^[27]:31 Calves are much more vulnerable than adults, and are additionally preyed on by leopards, spotted hyenas and wild dogs.^[12] A quarter to a half of giraffe calves reach adulthood.

Some parasites feed on giraffes. They are often hosts for ticks, especially in the area around the genitals, which has thinner skin than other areas.^[11] Tick species that commonly feed on giraffes are those of genera Hyalomma, Amblyomma and Rhipicephalus. Giraffes may rely on red-billed and yellow-billed oxpeckers to clean them of ticks and alert them to danger. Giraffes host numerous species of internal parasite and are susceptible to various diseases. They were victims of the (now eradicated) viral illness rinderpest.^[11]

Relationship with humans[link]

Cultural significance[link]

Bushman rock art in Namibia depicting a giraffe

Humans have interacted with giraffes for millennia. The Bushmen of southern Africa have medicine dances named after some animals; the giraffe dance is performed to treat head ailments.^[63] How the giraffe got its height has been the subject of various African folktales,^[10] including one from eastern Africa which explains that the giraffe grew tall from eating too many magic herbs.^[64] Giraffes were depicted in art throughout the African continent, including that of the Kiffians, Egyptians and Meroë Nubians.^[27]:45–47 The Kiffian were responsible for a life-size rock engraving of two giraffes that has been called the "world's largest rock art petroglyph".^[27]:45[65] The Egyptians gave the giraffe its own hieroglyph, named 'sr' in Old Egyptian and 'mmy' in later periods.^[27]:49 They also kept giraffes as pets and shipped them around the Mediterranean.^[27]:48–49

The giraffe was also known to the Greeks and Romans, who believed that it was an unnatural hybrid of a camel and a leopard and called it camelopardalis.^[27]:50 The giraffe was among the many animals collected and displayed by the Romans. The first one in Rome was brought in by Julius Caesar in 46 BC and exhibited to the public.^[27]:52 With the fall of the Roman Empire, the housing of giraffes in Europe declined.^[27]:54 During the Middle Ages, giraffes were only known to Europeans through contact with the Arabs, who revered the giraffe for its peculiar appearance.^[12]

Painting of a giraffe imported to China during the Ming Dynasty

In 1414, a giraffe was shipped from Malindi to Bengal. It was then taken to China by explorer Zheng He and placed in a Ming Dynasty zoo. The animal was a source of fascination for the Chinese people, who associated it with the mythical Qilin.^[27]:56 The Medici giraffe was a giraffe presented to Lorenzo de' Medici in 1486. It caused a great stir on its arrival in Florence,^[66] being reputedly the first living giraffe to be seen in Italy since antiquity. Another famous giraffe was brought from Egypt to Paris in the early 19th century. A sensation, Zarafa was the subject of numerous memorabilia or "giraffanalia".^[27]:81

Giraffes continue to have a presence in modern culture. Salvador Dalí depicted them with conflagrated manes in some of his surrealist paintings. Dali considered the giraffe to be a symbol of masculinity, and a flaming giraffe was meant to be a "masculine cosmic apocalyptic monster".^[27]:123 Several children's books feature the giraffe, including David A. Ufer's The Giraffe Who Was Afraid of Heights, Giles Andreae's Giraffes Can't Dance and Roald Dahl's The Giraffe and the Pelly and Me. Giraffes have also appeared in animated films, as minor characters in The Lion King and Dumbo, and in more prominent roles in The Wild and in the Madagascar films. Sophie the Giraffe has been a popular teether since 1961. Another famous fictional giraffe is the Toys "R" Us mascot Geoffrey the Giraffe.^[27]:127

The giraffe has also been used for some scientific experiments and discoveries. Scientists have looked at the properties of giraffe skin when developing suits for astronauts and fighter pilots.^[26]:76 This is because the people in these professions are in danger of passing out if blood rushes to their legs. Computer scientists have modeled the coat patterns of several subspecies using reaction–diffusion mechanisms.^[67] The constellation of Camelopardalis, introduced in the seventeenth century, depicts a giraffe.^{[27]:119–20}

Exploitation and conservation status[link]

Giraffe killed by tribesmen in the early 20th century

Giraffes were probably common targets for hunters throughout Africa.^[8]:337 Different parts of their bodies were used for different purposes.^[11] Their meat was used for food. The tail hairs served as flyswatters, braclets, necklaces and thread.^[8]:337[11] Shields, sandals and drums were made using the skin, and the strings of musical instruments were from the tendons.^[11] The smoke from burning giraffe skins was used by the medicine men of Buganda to treat nose bleeds.^[8]:337 European explorers also hunted them.^[11][27]:129 Habitat destruction has hurt the giraffe, too: in the Sahel, the need for firewood and grazing room for livestock has led to deforestation. Normally, giraffes can coexist with livestock, since they do not directly compete with them.^[14]

The giraffe species as a whole is assessed as Least Concern from a conservation perspective by the IUCN, as it is still numerous. However, giraffes have been extirpated from Burkina Faso, Eritrea, Guinea, Malawi, Mauritania and Senegal. They may also have disappeared from Angola, Mali, and Nigeria, but have been introduced to Rwanda and Swaziland.^[2] Two subspecies, the West African giraffe and the Rothschild giraffe, have been classified as Endangered,^[21][22] as wild populations of each of them number in the hundreds.^[15] In 1997, Jonathan Kingdon suggested that the Nubian giraffe was the most threatened of all giraffes;^[4] as of 2010^[update], it may number fewer than 250, although this estimate is uncertain.^[15] Private game reserves have contributed to the preservation of giraffe populations in southern Africa.^[14] Giraffe Manor is a popular hotel in Nairobi which also serves a sanctuary for Rothschild's giraffes.^[68] The giraffe is a protected species in most of its range. In 1999, it was estimated that over 140,000 giraffes existed in the wild, but estimates in 2010 indicate that fewer than 80,000 remain.^[15]

References[link]