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Reticulated Giraffe
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Giraffa camelopardalis reticulata
CLASS: Mammalia
ORDER: Artiodactyla
FAMILY: Giraffidae
GENUS: Giraffa
SPECIES: camelopardalis reticulata
LIFESPAN: 50 to 80 years
COLOR/PATTERN: The upper body is covered with dark red to chestnut brown blotches of various shapes and sizes on a buff background. The under parts are light and unspotted. The long neck is maned with short hair and the tail has a tuft of course hair at the end.
HORNS: Both sexes have two to four blunt, short, horn-like structures, called ossicones on the top of their head.
HABITAT: Dry savannas and open woodlands
RANGE: South of the Sahara in Africa
HEIGHT: Average range in adults is 14 to 18 feet, with some males reaching 20 feet.
WEIGHT: 2,420 to 4,215 pounds (males) , 1,540 to 2,600 pounds, (females)
REPRODUCTION: Almost always one calf. Breeding occurs year round with a conception peak during the rainy season.
GESTATION: 450 to 465 days, and typically 16-month intervals between calves.
DIET: Leaves from the acacia, mimosa, and wild apricot trees (wild), 16% grain, calf manna and alfalfa (zoos)
ACTIVE: Primarily diurnal, but are also considered nocturnal.
STATUS: Currently not protected except within national parks.
NOTES:
- Giraffes strip leaves from thorny acacia trees, with their 18-inch long, prehensile tongues.
- Bull giraffes forage higher in trees than cow giraffes, which reduce food competition between the sexes.
- They walk with the limbs on one side of the body lifted at the same time. This gait is called a pace and allows a longer stride, which saves steps and energy.
- A mother giraffe gives birth while standing, which is a 6-foot drop for the newborn.
- Giraffes usually sleep standing up, but occasionally lie down.
- In order to drink or pick up food from the ground, they must spread the forelegs apart or keel until the head can touch the ground.
- The giraffe has the ability to gather 75 pounds of food each day.
- A giraffe must drink water every 2 to 3 days, but can go without water as long as it can collect water from food.
- The giraffe is the biggest ruminant and the tallest mammal.
- The giraffe is too large to fall prey to predators, but 50 to 75 percent of calves are vulnerable to the lion and spotted hyena
Last Update:Thursday, May 05, 2005 at 13:10:00
