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The giraffe is a mammal, belongs to the order of artiodactyls, the giraffe family. The Latin name is Giraffa camelopardalis. Of the hired animal species, it is the highest. There are several types of giraffes that live in different places and climatic zones, which determines how much a giraffe weighs and its color.

The growth of giraffes reaches 5.7 m, of which 3.3 m is the body to the shoulders, 2.4 m is the neck to the horns. Males are larger than females, which are less on average by 1 m. Males weigh 1500-1900 kg, females - up to 1200. A newborn cub weighs 50-55 kg, height is 2 m. Life expectancy is 25 years in a zoo, 10-15 years in the wild.

Due to the high growth, the load on the heart muscle and the vascular system of the animal increases. The heart of giraffes is strong, weighing up to 12 kg. In 1 minute, it is able to drive up to 60 liters of blood, the pressure on the walls of blood vessels is 3 times higher than the human norm.

They have a thick skin covered with short hairs. Elongation of the coat is noticeable only on the mane, back, forehead and tail brush. The main color is not very noticeable, most of the body is covered with spots. The color of the coat is different for each species, depending on the area. Spots vary in size, color, location on the body, and quantity. Shades of spots range from yellow to black. The coat pattern obtained during intrauterine development remains unchanged throughout life. Small spots on the long neck and legs, absent on the abdominal part of the abdomen and the inner surface of the legs.

The legs of the giraffe are thin, but strong, the front legs are longer than the hind legs. The long neck also consists of 7 cervical vertebrae, the size of which is longer than usual. The back is sloping, ending in a thin long tail of 100 cm. The tip of the tail in the shape of a brush is a necessary device for protecting against insects. On the head there are 2 horns 15 cm each with tassels at the end. They are formed from bone tissue covered with skin and hair, and are thinner in females than in males. Another bony growth is located in the middle of the forehead, which is not a horn.

The tongue of giraffes is black, large and long, which helps with feeding, the muzzle is long, elongated. Reaches a length of 45 cm - this is necessary for obtaining food. The giraffe feeds on leaves from trees, which it captures from the upper branches with the help of its tongue.

Varieties of giraffes

With the help of genetic analysis alone, almost 200 giraffes of different groups were able to establish that there are 4 separate species of these mammals. Previously, it was believed that there is 1 species and 9 different subspecies. The variety depends on the place of residence, the main habitat is Africa. Each region has a specific subspecies, there are 9 subspecies in total.

1. Nubian giraffe. The habitat is in eastern Sudan and western Ethiopia. The coat color is dark, brown spots with bordered white lines. Bone growth on the forehead is large.
2. Rothschild giraffe or Ugandan - lives in Uganda. It has large brown spots with white stripes between them.
3. Somali or reticulated giraffe. Habitat - the north of Kenya and the south of Somalia. This subspecies is distinguished by its beauty in color, it has bright brown-red spots of medium size. Each spot ends with a sharp white edge. Bone growth in females is completely absent.
4. Angolan giraffe - inhabits the countries of Namibia and Botswana. The coat is colored with large elongated spots. In Angola, the birth of this subspecies took place, but now the population in the country has been destroyed.
5. Kordofan giraffe from western Sudan and Central Africa. A feature is the unevenly spaced spots, of which there are more in the lower part of the legs, at will of the joints.
6. The Masai giraffe, a species that has dark spots only on its legs, has an unusual star-like shape.
7. South African giraffe from Zimbabwe, Mozambique and South Africa. The color of the coat is golden, dark spots are round in shape.
8. Thornycroft's giraffe - lives in Zambia. The coat is light in color with dark spots of irregular shape with sharp corners.
9. The West African giraffe is a small subspecies and is protected from extinction. All surviving individuals number 175 giraffes, they live only in the state of Chad.

The height of the giraffe of each subspecies differs slightly from the others.

Previously, varieties were taken as independent species. The facts of a sharp difference in the spots and growth of giraffes led to this. Different patterns of color exist even among the same subspecies and families. There is a theory suggesting the existence of giraffes with a uniform coat color without spots.

Where do giraffes live?

Giraffes as a separate species appeared in Central Asia, then spread to the countries of Africa and Europe. The range of distribution of giraffes is from 5 to 654 km² and depends on the source of water and food. The habitat of giraffes is the African continent.

Geographically distributed from the southern lands of the Sahara Desert to the east of the Transvaal and northern Botswana. Previously, animals lived in West Africa, but all species have disappeared. In this part, giraffes live in the Republic of Niger thanks to the restored population from artificial reserves.

An arid climate is satisfactory for this group of mammals. Populations are found in savannas, meadows and sparse forests. For the place of formation of the herd, territories with a large number of acacias are selected, suitable for their feeding. Giraffes are not very dependent on the source of water, since they drink little. Males go in search of deciduous habitats from the herd.

Now favorable conditions are being created for giraffes in the reserves of Australia, Europe, Asia, America.

Nutrition and lifestyle

Giraffes lead a social lifestyle, living in large open herds. In one herd, there are on average 10-20 individuals, the maximum recorded number of inhabitants reached 70 animals. The giraffe can join or leave the herd voluntarily, at will. These mammals are considered to be very fast, reaching speeds of up to 60 km per hour and covering long distances.

Giraffes rest at night in a standing position, taking a certain pose. The animal lowers its head on its hind leg, the neck takes the form of a small arch. The recumbent position during sleep is rarely accepted. The eyes are not completely closed, slightly open, the ears twitch normally. They have the most minimal need for sleep duration of all mammals - about 2 hours per day.

To establish their superiority in the pack, fights are arranged. Adult males participate in the duel. Sparring begins with walking next to each other, the horizontal necks are directed forward. Then the necks are intertwined, the heads lean close to each other - this is necessary to assess the strength of the enemy. After scoring, a blow is struck with the neck and head. The force of the blow is heavy, some giraffes are knocked down and severely injured.

Giraffes are ruminant mammals with a four-chambered stomach that feed on plant foods. Most of the day - up to 20 hours, is spent eating. The main diet also consists of the following foods:

• leaves of trees;
• flowers;
• seeds;
• fruits.

They receive minerals from the soil of the savannah. From trees, leaves of Senegalese acacia, bashful mimosa, small-flowered combretum, apricots are used. During long travels, they can stay without food for a long time, replacing it with chewing gum. Acacia leaves are preferred. To break off the leaves, the giraffe pulls up and bends a tree branch, grabbing it with its mouth, the leaves are plucked with its lips. The presence of thorns does not interfere with eating acacia, the molars of a giraffe are able to grind them in the process of absorption along with the leaves. Females are selective in the choice of trees, prefer high-calorie leaves, getting them from the lower branches.

An adult animal consumes 65 kg of food per day. In a critical situation during a drought, for a giraffe to survive, it is enough to reduce the diet to 7 kg of food per day. They can consume up to 35 liters of liquid at a time.

Reproduction

This species is polygamous. During the mating season, the male begins courtship of the female. It begins by analyzing the smell of urine. After evaluating the female, the male rubs his head against her sacrum, then rests his head on his back. The next stage of courtship is licking the tail of the chosen one. Then the male throws his front paw onto her back. If the female has a positive attitude towards courtship, she lifts her tail for mating. In the rainy season, offspring are conceived. Bearing the fetus lasts 450 days on average.

Females give birth during dry seasons from May to August. Reproduction of giraffes occurs every 20-30 months. Delivery begins while standing or moving. A baby giraffe is called a calf, it is born with a height of 2 m. After 15 minutes, the newborn baby is already sucking its mother's milk and gradually rises to its feet. At first, for 7-10 days, the foal hides during the day and at night. The close stay of a female cub with its mother lasts up to 12-16 months. Males stay with their mother for 2 months less. Sexual maturity occurs in males at 4-5 years old, they begin to reproduce from 7 years old upon reaching maturity. Young females mature earlier - at 3-4 years old, but begin to reproduce later.

At birth, the giraffe lacks horns, instead there is only cartilage. As the calf grows, the cartilage ossifies, taking the shape of horns. The black fur covering the forehead also disappears.

Females are social in the herd. They organize collective supervision of the common cubs. After weaning the foal from its mother, after 4 weeks in the afternoon, one female looks after the cubs of the entire herd, which is periodically replaced. The rest of the females are free and can be absent for long distances, and all children remain under the supervision and protection from wild animals. The cubs are returned at night for feeding.

Role in the ecosystem

Giraffes are of great importance in the ecosystem of the planet. Many species are protected by security organizations. Interaction occurs with other animals and birds. Boil starlings have a mutually beneficial relationship with large mammals. They clean the back and neck of giraffes from ticks and insects with their beaks. At the same time, the birds receive the necessary nutrients.

The relationship with humans is not vital to the animal population. Giraffes in reserves and zoos, with the necessary care, live longer than in the wild. Poachers hunted giraffes for meat, skins, tails. Everyday objects were made from the hide: whips, reins, belts, upholstery. The ancient Greeks and Romans staged displays of these animals in the Colosseums for the entertainment of the public. The population of these mammals is protected in eastern and southern Africa, but has declined in the western regions of the continent. The total number of subspecies is 150 thousand individuals.

Wild animals and poachers are a threat to giraffes. On land they are hunted by lions, leopards, hyenas. Near water bodies during a watering hole, they are defenseless from attacks by crocodiles. Only large adults are able to defend themselves, the cubs are often attacked. The impressive size is able to scare away predators. The hooves of the front legs can hit hard, which is the giraffe's self-defense. One strong blow can break the skull bone of a not very large animal.

Giraffes are inhabitants of zoos. The correct housing conditions are beneficial for the animals and prolong their life span.

In early August, the living mascot of the Moscow Zoo, Samson, celebrates his 20th birthday. Giraffes are one of the most amazing and unusual animals on the planet. We will tell you what exactly makes them so

Tallest beasts on the planet

The growth of adult females is 4.6 meters, male giraffes can grow up to 6 meters, and their weight sometimes goes off scale for 1.5 tons. Females are shorter and not so heavy - maximum 800 kg. The main part of the length falls on the front legs and neck, which can grow up to two meters.

And it's not just about the length of the neck. The joints between the cervical vertebrae of this animal are arranged in the same way as the joint that connects the arm to the shoulder - this design allows us to move the upper limbs in all directions. At the same time, giraffes have only seven vertebrae in a two-meter neck - as many as in other mammals, whose necks are several times shorter. Giraffes can drop their necks almost to the ground to drink water, and place them on their hips to rest, turning back. They can wrap it around the neck of the female they like and swing around to inflict a sensitive head blow on the opponent. To reach the water, giraffes are forced to spread their legs. Photo: L SNEESBY & BARRIE WILKINS / STEVEBLOOM.COM / EAST NEWS Giraffes can lie down, but they try not to. The task of getting off the ground is not trivial for giraffes. This process requires significant tension of all muscles, and if the giant falls - which is quite likely due to the shifted center of gravity - it will almost inevitably break his legs. Therefore, giraffes try to sit down and, moreover, go to bed as little as possible, and mostly sleep while standing. Cubs, who still mistreat their bodies, completely fall to one side, not straightening their legs, if they decide to lie down. Only walk on a hard surface The large mass and thin limbs complicate even normal walking: giraffes can only move on a hard surface. Giraffes are famous for their spotted skin color, and each animal is different. These animals live in the African savannas south and southeast of the Sahara. In the wild, giraffes live for about 25 years. Giraffes have a very long tongue. The main dish of giraffes is acacia leaves. They contain a lot of moisture, and due to this, animals can not drink for a long time. The tongue helps them to reach the foliage at a height, the length of which reaches half a meter. Helped people design a spacesuit Under the influence of gravity, blood accumulates in the lower legs of the giraffe. More precisely, it would have happened if the animal organism had not adapted to the monstrous pressure of 400 mm Hg. Art. The strengthened walls of blood vessels and dense layers of connective tissue in the skin do not allow blood to accumulate at the bottom. These mechanisms work so efficiently that the American Space Agency (NASA) copied part of them in the development of spacesuits. The heart of a giraffe weighs over 10 kg Giraffes raise and lower their heads hundreds of times a day, and to get to the brain, blood must travel about three meters. The total volume of blood in the neck of a giraffe is so great that if there were human blood vessels in the head of these animals, they would immediately burst with colossal pressure. An impressive heart saves giraffes from oxygen starvation - it often weighs more than 10 kilograms, and its length exceeds 60 centimeters. Giraffes do not faint from oxygen starvation by raising their heads, and their arteries do not rupture when blood rushes to the lowered head, thanks to the extremely elastic vascular wall. It takes over the blood pressure, and the pressure in the brain remains practically unchanged. If the vessels were a little less elastic, they would be pinched when the giraffe tried to tilt its neck. Giraffes give birth while standing When a lion appears, a lying female will not be able to quickly stand up and protect the newborn. The cub falls out from a height of 1.5 meters, and the hind legs serve as a shock absorber in case of a collision with the ground. Like the young of other large ungulates, giraffes are born with their limbs forward, and their head rests on the croup. If the newborn takes a different position, he will inevitably break his neck. Giraffe skin is so tough that it is made into shields According to the leading zoologist of the mammals department of the Moscow Zoo, Ekaterina Morozova, in a normal situation, giraffes feel great, their extreme physiology does not cause them any inconvenience. On the contrary, thanks to the strongest skin, they are more resistant, for example, to bleeding. The skin of a giraffe is so dense that the Maasai make shields out of it. Therefore, giving a giraffe an injection is a big problem. The drugs are administered to animals using flying syringes that are fired from a kind of gun. Giraffe is very difficult to treat Only a veterinarian with special skills can inject a giraffe: you need to hit the animal in the chest, because the needle does not pierce the skin on the rump, legs or withers. It is also necessary to lay the sleeping giraffe in a special way: the body is pressed with some kind of soft structure like a haystack, otherwise the head that has fallen from a six-meter height will break on the ground. In addition, giraffes, like other ruminants, chew food several times, regurgitating poorly digested food back into the mouth. If the sleepy giraffe lowers its head, it will choke on the food mass - chewing gum. In order to make a giraffe any operation, you need 10-15 people who support, lay the animal, prevent it from falling. To facilitate this process, from the age of two, giraffes are taught to enter a special box, give their legs so that veterinarians can take blood, and so on. This is called medical training. On average, giraffes agree to "partner" with veterinarians after 5-6 years of regular training. Due to the extremes of physiology, giraffes are very well adapted to their living conditions and make full use of a niche inaccessible to other animals. And since they do not know that their body is working at the limit of what is possible, they are unlikely to worry about themselves. But such an accurate adjustment to the environment makes them very vulnerable to even small changes in it - the danger of extinction constantly looms before beautiful animals.

The giraffe is the tallest representative of the order of mammals. Thanks to its long neck, it can spot a creeping predator in time. Although giraffes are not aggressive, sometimes they even manage to win a deadly fight with a lion.

Giraffes occupy an area in the savannas of sub-Saharan Africa. They live in small herds of 40 - 70 individuals. Their main diet consists of the leaves and buds of trees, especially acacia trees.

Giraffes are very wary animals. They have well-developed eyesight and hearing. Thanks to its long neck, it has the ability to observe a large area and spot predators early.

Sometimes adult giraffes are attacked by leopards, but there is only one predator that has a chance to cope with a healthy giraffe - the lion. The most reliable way to protect a giraffe is to flee. But in exceptional cases, he can defend himself from the attacker by hitting the aggressor with his hoof.

Giraffes have characteristic rounded bony protrusions covered with skin on their heads, which, depending on the species, can be 2-5 cm long. Males use them during skirmishes for the leadership of the herd. During battles, animals butt each other with horns and interlace their necks. Such clashes never lead to injury, since the horns are rounded at the ends and not too dangerous. After the fight, the loser steps aside and no longer bothers the winner.

The growth of a giraffe at birth is 1.8 - 2 meters. The calf weighs from 50 to 55 kg. A few hours after birth, he is already quite firmly on his legs and can follow his mother.

Giraffes are not an endangered species. Their number is estimated at 110 - 150 thousand. individuals.

• Kenya - 45,000 giraffes
• Tanzania - 30,000 giraffes;
• Botswana - 12,000 giraffes.

Do you know that…

• Albinos are common among giraffes.
• The animal can cover a short distance at a speed of 50 km / h.
• In a giraffe, the front legs are longer than the hind legs.
• The tongue of a giraffe is very long and can reach 50 cm.
• The way of obtaining food differs between males and females. Males reach the tallest branches, while females predominantly eat leaves from low bushes.
• Despite the extremely long neck, the giraffe has only seven cervical vertebrae, just like other mammals. They are simply more elongated.
• The spine of a giraffe consists of 24 vertebrae.

The giraffe is a kind of mammal from the artiodactyl family of the same name. Close relatives of giraffes are okapi, and distant relatives are deer.

Giraffe (Giraffa camelopardalis).

The appearance of a giraffe cannot be confused with any other animal. It is a very large animal, competing with a bull in body weight. The weight of the giraffes is 750-900 kg. But looking at him, it's hard to believe that the giraffe is so heavy. It looks elegant due to the incredibly long flexible neck. Its length can reach several meters, and the total height of a giraffe is 5-6 m. This is the tallest animal on earth!

The saber-horned antelope next to the giraffe gives an idea of ​​its height.

The giraffe's head is small, it is crowned with short horns, pubescent with wool. Giraffes can also have two pairs of horns.

Sometimes there is a humped projection in the middle of the forehead, similar to the fifth underdeveloped horn.

The eyes of giraffes are large, with long fluffy eyelashes. It is also characteristic that these animals have a very long tongue, helping them to reach the most distant branches. By the way, this language is black.

The limbs of giraffes are of different lengths: the front ones are much longer than the hind ones, although in most animals the opposite is true. The legs are thin and slender, the unhurried gait of the giraffes looks a little stilted. Among all ungulates, the giraffe has the brightest color: large spots are scattered on the fawn skin, the color of which varies from red to brown. Legs and belly appear lighter. On the neck, giraffes have a short, erect mane, like a horse, and a tail, on the contrary, with a tassel like a donkey. Interestingly, the color of giraffes is strictly individual and the pattern of spots is never repeated.

The range of these animals covers almost all of Africa. Giraffes live in savannas and rare forests. These are herd animals living in groups of 7-12 individuals. There is a rigid hierarchy within the herd: animals are divided into ranks and the lower ones obey the higher ones. The position of the animal in the herd can be determined by the angle of inclination of the neck: the lower the giraffe stands on the hierarchical ladder, the more it lowers its neck to the ground. In general, giraffes are very calm and peaceful animals; there are no conflicts and physical struggles between them. By the way, this is the only ungulate species that is completely voiceless. Giraffes don't make any sounds at all!

Most of the time, these ungulates move at a leisurely pace, but although the giraffe does not hurry, its long legs allow it to develop a decent speed when walking. Giraffes walk also unusually: they amble, carrying out the legs of one side of the body while walking at the same time. They do not know how to run at a trot; in case of danger, they immediately go to a gallop. This gait also looks peculiar: the smooth movements of the giraffes give the impression of slow motion, but the speed can reach 50 km / h! Giraffes cannot maintain such a pace for a long time, but, surprisingly, they are able to jump high. Looking at the absurd limbs of giraffes you cannot say this, but they can easily jump over two-meter fences!

Sometimes giraffes lie on the ground, chewing food methodically. But these animals sleep less than an hour a day!

Giraffes feed on the foliage of trees, giving preference to acacias. With the help of a long neck, they are able to reach the very top branches, but they cannot reach the ground. To nibble grasses they have to bend their front legs, in the same position they are forced to drink. Another unusual feature of giraffes is that they sleep extremely little. In terms of sleep duration, they hold the record among vertebrates: in order to get enough sleep for an adult giraffe, 6-20 minutes a day is enough! Giraffes sleep, unlike most ungulates, not standing, but lying down, bending their neck to the croup.

In this position, giraffes are defenseless against predators.

Breeding season begins in summer. Males arrange ritual fights with each other, butting each other with their necks. But violent fights between them never happen.

Mating duel of giraffes.

Pregnancy in these animals lasts 15 months, the female gives birth while standing and the newborn falls to the ground from a height of two meters.

A female giraffe with a cub.

The cub keeps with its mother up to 1, 5 years, and becomes fully adult by 4 years. Giraffes live up to 25 years.

A baby giraffe is not separated from its mother.

In nature, lions and hyenas attack adults, and leopards can also hunt young animals. Predators try to lie in wait for giraffes at the watering hole when they drink water with their legs wide apart. In the event of an attack, the victim does not have time to rise; in other cases, the giraffe can give a worthy rebuff to the attackers. He defends himself with blows of his front legs and is quite capable of breaking the skull of a lion.

Giraffes tolerate captivity well and always attract visitors to zoos.

The giraffe is a mammal from the artiodactyl order. The giraffe is the tallest animal on the planet. The giraffe is an intelligent and peaceful animal that has been familiar to us since childhood. In this article you will find a photo and description of a giraffe, as well as 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 a giraffe can begin with its height first. The giraffe looks very tall. After all, the giraffe is the record holder in the animal world for growth and is one of the largest animals. The growth of a giraffe reaches a height of 6 meters. Moreover, the weight of the giraffe is 1 ton. The growth of the giraffe in males is greater than that of females. In addition, females weigh a little less.

The growth of a giraffe is 1/3 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, but the giraffe's vertebrae are just elongated. The neck of a giraffe is unusually strong, as it has strong muscles that allow you to hold the head and maneuver perfectly.

Since giraffes are tall and have a long neck, their circulatory system works with increased stress. Therefore, giraffes have a very strong heart. The heart of a giraffe 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 endure the overload if the animal will abruptly lower and raise its head. Nature made sure that such loads did not have sad consequences and made the giraffe's blood thicker. In addition, there are 2 times more blood cells in it than in humans. 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 strong body of the giraffe is covered with short hair. The color of the giraffe's coat adds to the look of the giraffe. The coat pattern of each giraffe is formed by a unique pattern of dark spots that stand out against the background of a light shade of the base color. Such a pattern is absolutely unique, like a human fingerprint. Underneath, the body of the giraffe is lighter in color and has no spots. In young individuals, the color is lighter than in older ones.

The giraffe looks funny, because its head with small ears has two horns covered with wool. Horns are present in both sexes. In females, the horns are thinner and have tassels. In males, they are thicker, and the coat is smoother. Occasionally, giraffes have two pairs of horns. On the forehead, giraffes often have a convex bony outgrowth that looks like a horn. The giraffe looks charming, because its huge black eyes have thick eyelashes. The giraffe has a thin 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 notice danger in time. And of course, the large growth of giraffes allows you to have a good view of the area. Giraffes can see each other up to a kilometer away. The giraffe's tongue is dark in color, often tinged with purple. The giraffe's tongue is 45 cm long and helps the animal to grasp the branches. The long neck of the giraffe allows it to reach the highest crowns.

The legs of the giraffe are strong and high, while the front legs are longer than the hind legs. Giraffes run fast. If necessary, the speed of a giraffe at a gallop can reach 55 km / h. Thus, an animal giraffe can overtake a racehorse for short periods. But most often giraffes move slowly, rearranging first two right hooves, then both left ones. With this walking, the speed of the giraffe is up to 7 km / h.

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 for giraffes are almost insurmountable. It is noteworthy that these huge animals can jump over barriers up to 180 cm high.

Currently, there are 4 types of giraffes and 9 subspecies. All of them differ in the pattern of wool and the color of the spots. The giraffe species are divided into: southern giraffes, Masai giraffes, reticulated giraffes, and northern giraffes.

Modern subspecies of giraffe include: Nubian giraffe, West African giraffe, Kordofan giraffe, Reticulated giraffe, Ugandan or Rothschild giraffe, Masai giraffe, Thornycroft giraffe, Angolan giraffe, and South African giraffe.

Where do giraffes live and how?

Giraffes live in Africa, inhabiting arid parts of it. 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 the destruction of natural habitats. Today, the largest number of giraffes lives in the protected areas of national parks. Giraffes are one of the few animals that do well in captivity and regularly breed.

Giraffes live practically without sleep, among all mammals they have the least need for this. The giraffe sleeps no more than 2 hours a day on average. But sometimes it is enough for them to take a nap for 10 minutes. Surely everyone wondered how giraffes sleep? They're so tall. Giraffes sleep both standing and lying down. In a prone position, the sleeping giraffe flexes its neck, bends its legs, and rests its head on its croup.

Giraffes live in small herds or singly. There is no strict attachment in the 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 both individuals of different sexes and of the same sex. In search of food, an animal giraffe can walk up to 100 km². Quite often you can see giraffes, which move along with herds of antelopes or zebras. This way they are safer.

The hierarchy and social behavior of giraffes in a herd is not yet fully understood. Although giraffes do not have a main leader, older and strong 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 head 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 by the tree, with each trying to press the opponent to the trunk and stab his head in the neck. Fortunately, giraffes do not use their main weapon against each other - dangerous blows with their front hooves. At least, such cases were not observed. By striking their hooves, they usually defend themselves from predators. The winner of the defeated male does not pursue.

Giraffes are mistakenly thought to be voiceless animals. They just communicate with each other at low frequencies that are indistinguishable to human hearing. However, giraffes still make sounds that we can hear. They can snort, whistle and roar, thus notifying their relatives in case of danger, as well as when looking for lost cubs.

What do giraffes eat?

The giraffe is a herbivore. Therefore, giraffes eat exclusively plant foods. Due to the structure of the body and physiology, giraffes eat the foliage of tree crowns located at a considerable height, where there is no competition. Giraffes eat the acacia tree, giving the greatest preference to this tree.

The giraffe grabs the branch with its long tongue and pulls it up to its mouth to nibble the leaves, while pulling its head back. Acacia has thorny branches, but the tongue and lips of the giraffe are designed in such a way that they allow them to eat without damage.

The giraffe eats up to 30 kg of food per day, spending most of the time at the meal. In times of famine, 7 kg of food is enough for a giraffe. Curiously, the sex of an animal can be determined from a distance by the way giraffes eat. Male giraffes predominantly eat very high-growing leaves, while they strongly stretch their necks and throw their heads back. Female giraffes eat leaves that grow at the level of their bodies, so they usually lower their necks a little.

An animal giraffe can go without water even longer than a camel. After all, food fully covers his need for fluid. However, if the giraffe has the opportunity to drink, then at a time he can drink up to 38 liters of water. To drink water, the giraffe must spread its front legs wide and lower its head low enough. 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 nibble the grass in times of hunger.

Giraffes are polygamous animals. Females become capable of reproduction at the age of 3-4 years, but for the first time they produce offspring by 5 years. In males, the breeding period 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 gestation period for a giraffe is 14-15 months. Usually only one baby giraffe is born. Giraffes give birth standing, in connection with which the baby giraffe at birth falls from a height of about 2 meters. You should not worry, the baby giraffe does not receive any injuries when falling.

The born baby giraffe is 180 cm tall and weighs 50 kg. An hour after birth, the cub is on its feet, and after a few more hours it can run. Giraffe cubs are allowed into the general herd only after a few weeks, at the same time they begin to nibble the grass. But the baby giraffe will feed on mother's milk almost up to 1 year.

Giraffes have a nursery where females send their young. In this way, mothers can wean from their young to find food and water. Watching a group of calves takes place between mothers in turn.

Cubs of giraffe are born without horns, but at the place of their appearance there is a tuft of dark hair, under which there is cartilage. As they grow older, the cartilage hardens, turning into horns that begin to grow. Tufts of black wool at the base of the horns remain with the young for several years, after which they disappear.

Giraffe cubs grow quickly, they are mobile and very active. Until about 1.5 years of age, the baby giraffe stays with its mother. Then 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 is capable of breaking the skull of any predator, although there are cases of the victory of predators over giraffes.

Few predators are willing to take risks, so attacks on adults are rare. Predators most often attack young animals. Despite the protection of the mother, up to 50% of young giraffes become prey to lions, leopards, hyenas and hyena dogs.

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