Giraffa camelopardalis
Out and about in South Africa’s wild places, the Giraffe is probably the closest thing you can get to a “gentle giant”, although I still wouldn’t venture too close to those powerful legs and heavy hooves if I were you! Towering up to 5 meters high, Giraffe are by far the tallest animal alive on earth today. Bulls can weigh up to 1,500kg, while cows are more delicately built and seldom reach a ton in weight.
Giraffes prefer open semi-desert and savanna habitats, especially where thorn trees proliferate. They feed on leaves, shoots, pods, flowers, thorns and fruit, consuming more than 50kg of browse daily. They also have a curious habit of chewing on old bones to supplement the calcium in their diet. When surface water is available, Giraffes will drink regularly, but in drier areas, like the Namib desert, they can survive without water for extended periods.
Giraffe society is a very fluid one. Adult cows and their calves congregate in herds numbering up to 30, but these are not very stable and individuals move between herds as they please. Adult bulls live mostly solitary lives, while younger bulls often associate in bachelor groups after leaving their maternal herds. Adult bulls establish their dominance through ritualised displays and fighting by using their long necks and heads as clubs, often knocking one another unconscious and sometimes even causing the death of one of the combatants through a broken neck or limb when they crash to the ground after a well placed blow. Although they seem ungainly, Giraffes can attain speeds of up to 60km/h, run for distances of up to 7km, and jump over fences 1.5m high! Giraffes have acute senses and other herbivore species often accompany them, as Giraffes are usually the first to detect the presence of predators. They are mostly diurnal, preferring to rest in the shade during the heat of the day.
Cows give birth standing up to single calves, although twins have been recorded, after a 15 month gestation. Giraffe calves are about 1.8m high and weigh up to 100kg at birth, and can stand within an hour of being born. Cows are very determined about protecting their calves, and many a lion has been kicked to death when attempting to catch a calf. Calves also fall prey to hyenas and leopards, while adults only really need to fear lions, of which they are a favourite prey. Giraffe can live to an age of up to 30 years in the wild.
Despite being classified as “Least Concern” by the IUCN, giraffe populations are declining across much of their range due to habitat loss and poaching, and the total African population now probably numbers less than 80,000 animals. Over 30,000 animals, representing the two southern subspecies, occur in Angola, Namibia, Zambia, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Mozambique and South Africa (where they have been extensively introduced outside their natural distribution range) and likely represent the only stable or increasing populations of giraffe on the continent. South Africa’s biggest population of giraffe occur in the Kruger National Park, but they are also regularly encountered in several other parks and reserves, including the uMkhuze section of the iSimangaliso Wetland Park, Hluhluwe-Imfolozi Park, Mapungubwe, Marakele, Mokala and Pilanesberg National Parks, and Ithala Game Reserve, of which they are the emblem.
Recent genetic studies suggest that there may actually be four distinct species of giraffe, but it remains to be seen whether this becomes a widely accepted scientific view.
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Love your collection of pics, especially the “fountain” when drinking. Depressing to read of their decreasing numbers even though they’re not on the concerned IUCN list. Majestic creatures with their height and that graceful gait when they run. I was surprised to discover that even with those long necks, giraffes only have seven vertebrae – good quizz question that!
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Thanks Liz! Indeed, there’s a lot more to giraffes than meets the eye.
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What a lovely set of pictures!
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Thanks very much, and welcome here!
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You are welcome! 🙂
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The giraffe is so fascinating. Different, but ‘the gentle giant’ is beautiful! Lovely photos:)
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Thanks Inger. They’re fascinating creatures indeed.
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Beautiful photos. Enjoyed learning all the giraffe facts. I testing about chewing on old bones
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Thanks Jane! Chewing old bones is certainly not their most endearing trait, but I suppose everyone forgets their manners sometimes.
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Hulle is lekker nuusirige ouens. Toe ons “oorlewing” gedoen het in die Klaserie het hulle dikwils vir ons gevolg… op ‘n afstand! 😉
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Dit is defnitief so, AJ. Hulle glo blykbaar n roofdier is net gevaarlik as jy hom nie kan sien nie.
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Maar ek’s nie ‘n roofdier nie! Wel, daar is baie wat nie sal saamstem nie! 😉
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Wel, as hulle van jou biltong-liefde hier op die blog kom lees gaan jy hulle moeilik anders ooruig…
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Ai… net ‘n ou bietjie hier… en ‘n ou bietjie daar… 😉
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I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE giraffes. The last silhouette is my favourite. They are just so goofy looking and silhouette photos of giraffes really highlight that oddness.
When we went on safari on the Serengeti several years ago, I came back with only one small souvenir … a wooden carving of a giraffe. In black, it looks like a silhouette on my mantle. Love it!
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They’re so quintessentially African, Joanne, you couldn’t have made a better curio selection.
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Ek is mal oor kameelperde, Dries!! Sulke pragtige foto’s!!
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Baie dankie Aletta! Ja-Nee, hulle is besonderse diere en n mens kan Afrika nie sonder hulle indink nie.
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Dis vereker!
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Great info. and pics Dries. I was fascinated with their tails and how they fling them about when they run!
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Those bushy tails would make a fascinating photographic study in themselves, Michael!
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The most beautiful eyes on the planet! Great photos and article, thanks. 🙂
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Thanks so much, Pat! They are beautiful creatures for sure.
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Thanks for the wonderful photos and information. I really liked reading it! When I was in Blijdorp zoo of Rotterdam (Netherlands) I observed the giraffe herd as well. Let’s see if I can get a photo online. 🙂
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So glad to know you enjoyed our giraffe post so much, Marion!
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Fantastic post Dries! I simply love giraffe!! Didn’t know that they can jump, thanks for that very interesting bit of info.
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Thanks very much, Cal! I think many people will share your fondness for these beautiful animals.
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Beautiful Pictures of them in the sunset! They’d be expensive pets to feed! 50 kg’s a day!! Holly Cow! Exquisite creatures! 🙂 T.
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Thanks Teresa! Agreed, better to leave them to feed themselves on the thorn trees at home!
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Fascinating information about a giraffe. I did not realize they were that strong or violent. That curious giraffe does not look too happy, does he?
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Poor things, they never look happy! Always serious!
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