They may eat between 50-75 pounds of leaves every day! – Giraffe’s favorite food are leaves of the Acacia tree. – Giraffes are browsers of leaves, not grazers of grass, and being the tallest of Africa’s animals, allows them to eat food no other browser can reach. They eat and digest food similar to a cow, chewing and swallowing, then regurgitating the partially digested cud back into their mouth to chew it again, which helps to release more nutrients from the food they eat. – Giraffes are ruminants, and like cattle, have four stomachs and chew their cud, which helps them to get more nutrients out of their diet.
They reach full maturity by about 5 years old and normally live into their twenties.Ī mother giraffe with her baby. The giraffe calf will nurse until the mother weans it around 10-16 months. The baby can stand on its own and nurse within 30 minutes and can run within 10 hours. – At birth, the giraffe calf weighs around 150 pounds and is six feet tall. The calf is born while the mother is standing up, coming out front hooves first. – A mother giraffe is pregnant for 400-460 days, usually with just one calf. This pigment serves the same function in human skin, helping to toughen and protect it from sunburn. Their tongue is black, due to the pigment melanin. So, in order to drink, a giraffe must splay its legs out because even though their necks appear very long, they still aren’t long enough to reach the ground. A giraffe’s front legs are longer than their rear legs. Their feet are the size of dinner plates! Their hides are very thick and tough, to protect from both predators and the sharp spines on the plants they browse upon, like Acacia trees. A giraffe has the largest heart of any land mammal, weighing up to 25 pounds! Males differ from females in being taller, heavier, and having larger ossicones. The mane is short & stiff like a donkey’s. The long neck has seven bones, just like in humans, but they are much larger and stronger. And the patterns vary slightly between species as well. The coat pattern is as unique as a human fingerprint, which enables researchers to identify and study individual animals throughout their lives.
– Ossicones vary in number depending upon the type of giraffe the Rothchild’s Giraffe has 5 altogether, while others have 3.
They are made of cartilage and are covered by skin and fur. Both males and females have them, though males are larger. The pair of horn-like structures on their heads are called ossicones.
They are the world’s tallest animals, some reaching up to 19 feet high. Their closest relative is the Okapi, who also lives in Africa. Giraffes are even-toed ungulates, in the same order as cattle, hippos, goats, and sheep.
You’ll also find here a giraffe coloring page I’ve designed for kids as well as sketching workshop where I teach you all about giraffes and lead you through a step-by-step demonstration on how to draw these gentle giants of the African savannas. I’ve assembled some facts and resources on giraffe biology, ecology, anatomy, and conservation. World Giraffe Day is observed annually on June 21st the longest day of the year, to celebrate the animal with the longest neck!