A few more facts about GIRAFFES:
Female giraffes are pregnant for 14 months, they normally have one baby, and they give birth standing up. A baby giraffe is about 6 ft. tall at birth and weight 100 to 150 lbs. Babies endure a rather rude welcome into this world, as they fall more than 5 feet to the ground at birth. Infant giraffes can stand within 30 minutes to an hour after birth, and they are usually running with their mother's within ten hours after birth. They typically mature within 3 to 5 years.
Giraffes also use their height for eating their favorite food... Acacia leaves. They eat leaves and buds from treetops, which is to their advantage because few other animals can get to this food. A giraffe's tongue measures up to 21 inches, which also helps them to reach and grasp from the branches. A giraffe eats hundreds of pounds of leaves each week, so they must travel miles to find enough food. Giraffe's eat like cows; eating most of the time and regurgitating food then chewing it as cud.
A giraffe has seven vertebrae in their neck, which is the same amount as all other mammals, however, in a giraffe's neck, they are much larger.
A giraffe's heart has special adaptations to enable it to pump blood up its long neck to its head. A giraffe's heart has the unthinkable task of pumping blood at high enough pressure that it can flow up the giraffe's neck to the brain. A giraffe's heart can weigh up to 22 lbs. and it generates twice the blood pressure of other large mammals; having enough blood pressure to pump blood to the brain when the giraffe's neck is extended upward is one challenge, but when it lowers its head it is at risk of injury due to excessive blood pressure. To counter this, giraffes have a pressure-regulating system known as the rete mirabile in their neck, which equalizes blood pressure when the animals bends down to drink.
Giraffe's legs are taller than most humans, reaching about 6 ft. in height. Their long legs contribute to their being able to run up to 35 mph when running a short distance, and up to 10 mph when gracefully gliding longer distances. They usually roam the open grasslands in groups of about six.
Giraffes have longer front legs than hind legs. When viewed from a side profile, their shoulders are noticeably higher than their hips, and their back slopes downward as it approaches the tail. However, you get the impression the front legs are much longer than the hind legs, but in fact, they are only slightly longer.
Giraffe's have a distinctive walking gait, which is what makes them appear so graceful, even when running. They walk (and run) by moving both legs from front to back, on one side at the same time.
A giraffe's height and stature can also be to a disadvantage to them, as it is difficult and dangerous for them to drink from a water hole in the wild. When they drink, they have to spread their legs and bend down in an awkward position which puts them in a vulnerable position to predators, such as lions and others. Luckily giraffes get water from the plants they eat, therefore, only need to drink once every few days.
Male giraffes, called bulls, sometimes fight each other. They do this by butting heads and swinging their long necks. These fights are typically not fatal or dangerous; they usually end when one gives in and walks away.
It's said there is one species of giraffe (Camelopardalis) and numerous subspecies (listed below). Experts seem to disagree on the number of giraffe subspecies. Some of the various subspecies that have been described include:
Subspecies:
Reticulata (Reticulated Giraffe)
Subspecies:
Camelopardalis (Nubian Giraffe)
Subspecies:
Rothschildsi (Uganda or Baringo Giraffe)
Subspecies:
Tippelskirchi (Masai Giraffe)
Subspecies:
Angolensis (Angolan Giraffe)
Subspecies:
Giraffa (Southern Giraffe)
No comments:
Post a Comment