World Giraffe Day – 21st June
World Giraffe Day – 21stJune
World Giraffe Day is an exciting initiative by Giraffe Conservation Foundation to celebrate the tallest living terrestrial animal and the largest ruminant on Earth. every year on 21 June.
The giraffe is a large African hoofed mammal belonging to the genus Giraffa. The giraffe’s chief distinguishing characteristics are its extremely long neck and legs, its horn-like ossicones, and its spotted coat patterns. It is classified under the family Giraffidae, along with its closest extant relative, the okapi. Its scattered range extends from Chad in the north to South Africa in the south, and from Niger in the west to Somalia in the east. Giraffes usually inhabit savannahs and woodlands.
Fully grown giraffes stand 4.3–5.7 m tall, with males taller than females. The average weight is 1,192 kg for an adult male and 828 kg for an adult female. Despite its long neck and legs, its body is relatively short. The skin is mostly gray, or tan, and can reach a thickness of 20 mm. The 80–100cm long tail ends in a long, dark tuft of hair and is used as a defense against insects. The coat has dark blotches or patches, which can be orange, chestnut, brown, or nearly black, surrounded by light hair, usually white or cream coloured. Male giraffes become darker as they grow old.
Giraffes can run about 35 miles per hour over short distances.Giraffes get most of their water supply from the plants that they eat.They only need to sleep for a maximum of 30 minutes per day. Giraffes are non territorial groups. They live in herds of related females and their offspring or bachelor herds of unrelated adult males, but are gregarious and may gather in large aggregations. A group of giraffes is referred to as a ‘tower.’Lions, leopards, spotted hyenas, and African wild dogs may prey upon giraffes.
The single offspring is about two metres tall and height 100 Kgs. Giraffes grow to nearly their full height by four years of age but gain weight until they are seven or eight years old.
Giraffes possess 32 teeth and most of their teeth, are located at the back of their mouths. Giraffes grab leaves and twigs using their lips, slide them down their mouth using their extremely long tongues (21 inches), and then disgorge the food and use their back teeth to chew the food before swallowing.
Giraffes are notoriously quiet. Giraffes make snorts, grunts, hisses, bellows, coughs, moos, and more. They are also humming and infrasound.
Their food source is leaves, fruits, and flowers of woody plants, primarily acacia species, which they browse at heights most other herbivores cannot reach.
– Source: Internet –