Giraffes and Okapi

The most distinctive characteristics of giraffes are their very long legs, and their enormously long neck. It is interesting that, compared with related families such as the deer (Cervidae), giraffes have the same number of neck vertebrae—the remarkable elongation of their neck is due solely to lengthening of the individual vertebrae. A short, dark mane runs along the top of the length of the neck.

The fore legs are slightly longer than the hind legs, but the profile of giraffes is also influenced by the extreme development of musculature on their shoulders and base of the neck. These large muscles are used to keep the heavy neck erect, and they give the animal a rather An adult male okapi grazing. Photograph by Tom Brakerfield. Stock Market. Reproduced by permission.
Herd of giraffes standing in a field. Photograph by Michael C.T. Smith. The National Audubon Society Collection/Photo Researchers, Inc. Reproduced by permission.
hunched appearance, with a steeply sloping back. Giraffes have a rather long tail, which ends in a dark tassel.

Giraffes can run quite quickly, using a rather stiff, ambling gait because of their long legs. To drink, giraffes must stoop awkwardly to reach the water.

The largest male giraffes can attain a height of 19 ft (6 m). Females are somewhat shorter, by about 3 ft (1 m). Large male giraffes can weigh as much as 1,650 lb (750 kg).

The pelage of giraffes is highly variable, and several geographic races have been named on the basis of their colors and especially their patterns. The basic color is brownish, with a network of white lines breaking up the solid profile. Formerly, two different species of giraffes were recognized on the basis of distinctive differences in the patterns of their pelage and their non-overlapping ranges. These were the relatively widespread giraffe (Giraffa camelopardalis) and the reticulated giraffe (G. reticulata) of east Africa. However, further study has demonstrated that these animals are fully interfertile, and their differences are not sufficiently great to warrant their designation as full species. Today, taxonomists recognize only one species of giraffe, Giraffa camelopardalis.

The head of giraffes is relatively small, at least in comparison with the large body size of these animals. The head has a rather elongated profile, with a long, thin upper lip, which is prehensile and used along with the long, black, mobile tongue to dextrously grasp and tear foliage while the animal is feeding. Giraffes have large eyes, with very long eyelashes. Their ears are short, but quite mobile, and both hearing and vision are acute.

The horns of giraffes are two to five, permanent, knobby outgrowths on the forehead or top of the head, covered by skin. Both sexes have these horns. The horns are smaller than, but anatomically comparable to, the antlers of deer, except those of the giraffe are never shed and are always covered by skin.

Giraffes are social animals, but not highly so, as they do not occur in large herds. The largest herds can include as many as 20-50 animals, with several dominant male animals (or bulls) and many females (or cows) and offspring. Bull giraffes fight among themselves, using powerful swings of their knobby-topped heads, aiming at the neck or chest of their rival. Old bulls that are unable to maintain a harem live a life solitary from other giraffes. A single baby (or calf) giraffe is born after a gestation period of 14-15 months.

Often, giraffes will associate with other large herbivores such as zebras, gnus, and ostriches in mixed foraging groups. Giraffes commonly have ox-peckers (Buphaga spp.) riding on their backs. These useful birds feed on large insect and tick parasites that can be common on the hides of giraffes and other large mammals.

Adult giraffes are not an easy mark for their natural predators, unless they can be ambushed while in an awkward stance, such as when they are drinking. Giraffes can run quickly for a long distance, and they can inflict sharp wounds with the hooves of their front legs. The most important predators of giraffes are lions, but a pack of these large cats is required to kill an isolated adult giraffe. Young giraffes are more vulnerable, but they are generally well protected by their social group, which is very alert for the presence of nearby predators.

Giraffes are still relatively abundant in some parts of their range. However, they have become widely extirpated from large areas, equivalent to more than one-half of their original range. This substantial decline in the overall population and range of giraffes is mostly associated with conversions of their natural habitats into agriculture, as well as over-hunting of these animals.