We all know them as the tallest living land animals in the world, but there are more interesting facts about giraffes that you don’t know. So check out more about these gentle giants of the African savannah.
1. One of the most distinctive features of the giraffe is its height. Newborn babies are usually about six feet (1.8 meters) tall, which makes them taller than most adults.
2. Adult male giraffes can weigh up to 3,000 lbs (1360 kilograms) and grow up to 18 feet (5, 5 meters) tall.
3. The pattern on the skin of each giraffe is as unique as human fingerprints.
4. Although the neck of a giraffe is incredibly long, when looking at the anatomy of the giraffe spine, you will find that, like the human, the giraffe has only seven cervical (neck) vertebrae.
5. Due to the specific structure of the neck, a giraffe’s heart is very large and strong and weighs about 25 pounds, it has to be that big to pump blood all the way to its brain.
6. Giraffes are herbivores (vegetarians) and feed mainly on leaves, fruit, and twigs of trees. Because this diet is very poor in nutrients, giraffes need to eat almost thirty kilograms of leaves, so they spend about twenty hours of their day eating.
7. Surprisingly enough, giraffes only need 5 to 30 minutes of sleep in a 24-hour period.
8. In addition to a long neck, giraffes have an incredibly long tongue that usually measures 18-20 inches long. The tongue is very hard, so they can feed on very palatable leaves that grow on very thorny branches, such as the acacias whose spines could otherwise cause cuts and injuries.
9. In order to avoid sunburn from the bright African sun, the giraffe’s tongue has a dark black, blue, or purple color.
10. Giraffes, unlike other vertebrate species, never yawn. One of the graduate students spent 35 hours watching zoo giraffes and never saw a yawn.
11. Giraffes are able to jump over obstacles up to 1.85 meters high.
12. It takes a giraffe baby a few minutes to get his bearings, during which time his mom licks him clean. Within an hour, most calves are standing and taking their first steps.
