What are giraffes and where are they. Giraffe is the tallest animal in the world

The tallest land animal on our planet is the giraffe, a mammal from the artiodactyl order, giraffe family.

The height of the male giraffe is from 5.5 to 6.1 m (about a third of this length is the neck), its weight is in the range of 900-1200 kg. Females are usually slightly smaller in size and weight. The neck of a giraffe is surprisingly long, despite the fact that, like other mammals, it consists of only seven vertebrae. The giraffe has a long, dark and strong tongue that it can stick out 45 cm when grasping branches.

The coat of the animal is decorated with a pattern of dark spots, which stands out against the light base color, and is individual for each individual, akin to human fingerprints. The body below is light, without spots. On the head, both males and females have two horns with thickenings at the tips. On the forehead in the middle there is a bone outgrowth, also resembling a horn. The eyes are black, the eyelashes are thick, the ears are short. The giraffe has well-developed eyesight, hearing and sense of smell, so they quickly determine the danger. High growth also helps to survey the area around. An animal can notice its relative within a radius of 1 km.

The giraffe is a herbivore. Due to its body structure and physiological characteristics, it can feed on leaves from the crowns of tall trees, where there is no competition. Giraffes' favorite tree is the acacia. They cover the branch with their tongue, pull to the mouth and pluck the foliage, pulling their heads back. A giraffe needs about 30 kg of food per day, which it absorbs within 16-20 hours. Interestingly, the technique of gathering food differs between males and females. Males eat foliage located very high, at the same time they stretch and throw back their heads strongly. Females choose leaves that grow at the level of their body, and vice versa slightly lower their neck. The giraffe receives the necessary moisture from the leaves and can go without water for a week. But at one time the animal is able to drink up to 38 liters of water. To drink, the giraffe spreads its front legs wide to allow its head to drop. In this position, they become clumsy and vulnerable to predators. In a similar way, giraffes can eat grass, but this is a rare occurrence.

The giraffe is an inhabitant of the savannas of the African continent. It is found south and southeast of the Sahara, in southern and eastern Africa. Northern populations were exterminated by people in antiquity: during the time of Ancient Egypt, animals lived in the Nile Delta and on the Mediterranean coast. In the 20th century, the range of the giraffe decreased significantly. The largest populations remained today in the reserves.

Common types of giraffe

According to the patterns on the body and habitats, the following subspecies of the giraffe are distinguished:

• Nubian giraffe (G. c. camelopardalis) is a nominative subspecies inhabiting eastern Sudan and western Ethiopia.

• West African giraffe (G. c. Peralta) - found only in Chad.

• Kordofan giraffe (G. c. antiquorum) - lives in the west of Sudan and the Central African Republic.

• Reticulated giraffe (G. c. reticulata) - lives in northern Kenya and southern Somalia.

• Ugandan giraffe, or Rothschild's giraffe (G. c. rothschildi) - common in Uganda.

• Masai giraffe (G. c. tippelskirchi) is a resident of southern Kenya and Tanzania.

• Thornycroft's giraffe (G. c. thornicrofti) is found in Zambia.

• Angolan giraffe (G. c. angolensis) - distributed in Namibia and Botswana.

• South African giraffe (G. c. giraffa) - lives in South Africa, Zimbabwe, Mozambique.

The Ugandan giraffe is distinguished by brown, large, unevenly shaped spots that are separated by wide white stripes. The Maasai giraffe's spots are small and dark, five-pointed. The unique spots of reticulated giraffes are dark and polygonal, with narrow white stripes in between, resembling a net. The first three subspecies are very rare, and the Angolan giraffe was completely exterminated.

Sexual dimorphism in giraffes is manifested in the size of animals. Males are usually larger than females.

Giraffes live either alone or in small herds, which are especially favored by the females. In search of food, they bypass the area up to 100 km². Giraffes often move with antelopes and zebras for added security.

There is no leader in groups of giraffes, but older and stronger males still have advantages. When young males reach puberty, they either go to live separately or form their own groups. Adult males often arrange ritual duels, which are most aggressive during the mating season.

It is widely believed that the giraffe is a voiceless animal. But in fact, giraffes communicate with each other, but at frequencies below 20 Hz, which humans cannot distinguish.

Of all mammals, the giraffe is the least sleepy, with between 10 minutes and 2 hours of sleep a day. Giraffes sleep either standing or lying down, bending their necks and resting their heads on their croup.

Giraffes have a mating season from July to September. Pregnancy lasts 14-15 months, after which the female gives birth to one cub. Childbirth takes place in a standing position, and the newborn falls from a height of about 2 meters. The growth of a newly born giraffe reaches 1.8 m, weight is about 50 kg. An hour after the birth of the baby, he is already firmly on his feet, and after a couple of hours he begins to run. It is accepted into the herd in 2-3 weeks. For about a year and a half, the giraffe lives next to its mother. Sexual maturity occurs at 4 years, and the giraffe fully grows at 6 years. The life expectancy of a giraffe in natural conditions is approximately 25 years, in captivity it increases to 35 years.

Due to its impressive size, the giraffe has few natural enemies, and from those predators that dare to attack it, it defends itself with the help of blows from the front hooves. Such a blow cuts the skull of any predator. For this reason, predators practically do not attack adult giraffes, but lions, leopards, hyenas and hyena-like dogs can attack young individuals. Only 25-50% of young animals reach adulthood.

• Giraffes run fast, up to 55 km/h, and can even overtake a racehorse over a short distance. But for the most part, they don't rush. Given the large weight and thin legs of animals, they move exclusively on hard surfaces, swamps and rivers are impassable for them. Giraffes can also jump, up to 1.85 m in height.
• The ancient Greeks and Romans actively hunted the northern giraffe populations and exterminated them completely. Occasionally they were shown in the Colosseum. But in Europe, this animal was little known. In Africa, hunting for giraffes was carried out using pits and special traps. Bowstrings and strings of musical instruments were made from long tendons of animals, clothes were made from skins, which were a symbol of high status. Giraffe meat is tough but generally edible. Ever since giraffe hunting has become a pastime, their numbers have been drastically reduced.
• Today the giraffe is a rare species. Large populations remained only in eastern Africa. The total number is estimated at 100,000 - 150,000 individuals. But animals are not on the verge of extinction. They are kept in many zoos around the world, where they breed well.
• The only living relative of the giraffe is an animal called the okapi. The rest of the giraffes are extinct.

The giraffe on planet Earth has the glory of being the tallest mammal. Want to know how much a giraffe weighs and how tall it is? Here are the parameters of this amazing giant:

Height - up to 5.7 m;
height from hooves to shoulder - 3.3 m;
neck length 2.4 m;
male weight about 1900 kg;
the weight of the female is about 1200 kg.

The male is significantly taller than the female. This indicator fluctuates in the range of 0.7-1 m. Speaking about how much a giraffe weighs, it should also be said about the cubs. The parameters of the cubs are as follows: weight is about 50 kg, height is around 2 m.
Giraffes are spotted. In different habitats, the color of giraffes varies. In total, by color, there are 9 subspecies of giraffes. Each subspecies has its own pattern. The size of characteristic spots varies - from small to large. Spot color variations can be black or yellow. From birth, the cub has such a pattern, which then does not change. The color of an animal's coat may depend on the time of year and the health of the individual.
Nature endowed the giraffe with long and very strong limbs. Their peculiarity is that the hind legs are shorter than the front ones. The neck of the animal 7 elongated vertebrae.
By the way, we recommend reading an article about giant rabbits called "Flanders".

Despite how much the giraffe weighs, it is a very beautiful animal.
The back of the animal has a sloping shape. The length of the thin tail ranges from 75 to 101 cm. The end of the tail is crowned with a black tassel. This circumstance allows the giraffe to successfully get rid of annoying insects. Animal horns are bony protrusions. They are covered with wool and leather. Females have thin horns with tassels at the end. Male horns are thick, and the hair on them is smoothed. The forehead of a giraffe is decorated with a bone growth. Some, by mistake, may mistake it for the middle horn. The size of the eyes of a giraffe is large. The color of the tongue is black. Its length is astounding. It is 45 cm. This allows giraffes to grab food from the top of the tree.
Giraffes live in Africa. Their habitat is the northern part of Botswana, south of the Sahara to the east of the Transvaal. Unfortunately, these beautiful animals are disappearing today from many habitual habitats (as well as many other animals - elephants, crocodiles, anacondas, etc.). An exception can be considered a population in Niger. The authorities of the republic are making great efforts to settle giraffes here, which are brought specially from various South African reserves.

Features of the habitat.
The favorite places that giraffes choose to live in are considered arid even for the African continent. In addition, speaking about how much a giraffe weighs, it should be borne in mind that for food they need a large number of dense thickets of acacia. Giraffes easily endure thirst. Males sometimes migrate towards wooded areas where there is more foliage.

Lifestyle features.
Giraffes belong to the category of social animals. In terms of size, the average herd is about 20 individuals. Once, zoologists recorded a herd of 70 giraffes. The mode of life in the herd is free. This means that an individual, if he wishes, can move to another herd. But this opportunity, most often, is used by males. Females are socialized to a greater extent.
Giraffes eat strictly in the morning and evening hours. Mammals sleep standing up. They can lie down, but they do it extremely rarely. When a giraffe rests, it places its head on its back leg. The neck of the animal, while forms a picturesque arch. The state of the eyes in a dream is half-closed, the ears twitch slightly. In the peak of the midday heat, giraffes are usually busy chewing gum.

Before mating, males participate in fights, proving their superiority to females. The fight takes place strictly between two opponents. Walking in a parallel course to each other, the males hold their necks horizontally, intertwining them. So they evaluate the power of the future enemy. After that, they, standing next to each other, begin to strike with the head and neck. These are very strong blows. If the giraffe is not knocked down, then the matter ends with serious injuries.
While running, giraffes can move at speeds from 30 to 60 km/h. In this case, the animal can run quite an impressive distance.
In zoos, giraffes live up to 27 years. In the wild, their life span is no more than 15 years.
Now you know how much a giraffe weighs, how tall it is and how many years a giraffe lives.

http://egorium.ru/skolko-vesit-zhiraf/

One of the most famous and beloved animals giraffe. Interestingly, even those who have never seen him live love him. It's definitely worth seeing, at least once in your life.

This is an incredibly graceful animal, elegant and graceful. However, it seems so only at first glance. In fact, the giraffe is just huge, because its height reaches 6 meters, this tallest animal. And such an animal weighs under a ton, and it happens that more. Females are usually smaller.

Of course, the unusualness of this giraffe family lies, first of all, in its unusual neck. Compared to the body, it is simply incredibly long.

But meanwhile, it has only 7 cervical vertebrae, like any other animal that has a normal or even a very short neck. But the neck muscles of the giraffe are very powerful. They are able not only to hold the head of this beast high above, but also to make any manipulations with a large, heavy neck.

It is believed that there are no giraffes with the same location of spots.

This animal has a very strong and large heart, weighing 12 kg. The work of this organ is not easy, because it is necessary to pump blood to the brain and disperse it throughout the body, and since the brain is far above, it is very important for a giraffe to maintain the right pressure, it is three times higher in this animal than in an ordinary person.

With such pressure, the animal could die if the head was suddenly lowered or raised - too much overload. But nature has made the giraffe's blood very thick and dense, and also, the animal's veins are equipped with valves that control the flow of blood.

giraffe language also unusual. It is too dark in color, and can protrude almost half a meter. This is necessary for the animal in order to cling to tree branches that grow especially high.

On the head are large eyes with thick eyelashes, giraffes have excellent eyesight. He is able to notice other giraffes at a distance of a kilometer. The ears are not large, although the hearing is excellent.

Giraffe's tongue has an unusual color

You should not complain about the sense of smell either, it is well developed in a giraffe. On the head there are horns covered with wool. Sometimes you can meet a giraffe with two pairs of horns. And some individuals also have a horn - in the middle of the forehead, although, for real, this is a bone growth that is not a horn.

The legs of these animals are long and thin. Due to the fact that they have to carry too much weight, giraffes can only move on hard and dense surfaces.

Therefore, swamps, and even more so, rivers, giraffes do not tolerate at all. They prefer to move slowly, smoothly, without sudden movements. However, one should not think about this is animal, as about the bumpkin. Giraffe if necessary, it is able to run at a speed of 55 km / h and make high jumps of more than 1.8 meters.

The strong body of the animal is covered with uniform, short hair, which has a peculiar color. On a lighter background, there are spots of various shapes and in a chaotic manner. The shape and location of the spots is individual, just like fingerprints on a person's hand.

This is how giraffes sleep

But all giraffes do not have spots on their stomachs. These amazing people live only in Africa. They are especially comfortable in the savannas, which are located in the south and east, below the Sahara.

However, even though the real giraffe animal world and comfortable for his stay, the number is constantly falling. In order to preserve the population, special reserves, reserves, protected zones are created, where they protect the peace of these animals, allowing them to breed and live a long life in natural conditions.

But giraffe such animal that people want to see live, not just on the picture. Therefore, many zoos have these magnificent animals. In captivity, individuals reproduce very well, quickly get used to new conditions and live without feeling inconvenience.

The nature and lifestyle of the giraffe

Giraffes rarely live alone. Most often they gather in small groups, which can hardly be called herds. Females, for example, can gather in groups of 4 to 30 heads. At the same time, the composition of the group can constantly change.

Giraffes can congregate in large herds and small groups

And even in such groups, they are not too attached to each other. It is enough for an animal to know that its brethren are grazing next to it, and it is not at all necessary to contact them.

In addition, these giants have few enemies, so there is no need to rally into a strong, reliable herd. Although when moving in search of food, giraffes can join other herds, for example, to.

In such herds, it is easier for mothers to defend themselves against or, which rarely attack adult animals, but they hunt for babies. But after the right place is found, the proud leave their companions - antelopes.

There are no leaders or leaders in groups, but older animals, nevertheless, enjoy special authority. Also, there are fights when two strong, adult males meet.

In the photo, the fight of male giraffes

Their fights consist of headbutting the opponent's neck. Usually, great cruelty is not observed, but during the mating season, males become more aggressive.

But even then they do not use kicks, which are considered the most dangerous and are used only in defense against predators. It is known that such a blow can easily split the opponent's skull.

But giraffes are peaceful towards their fellows. In addition, the male who was defeated can safely remain in the herd further, no one expels him, as other animals do.

It is believed that giraffes do not make sounds at all. This is not true. These animals have a voice, but it is much lower than the frequencies that the human ear can distinguish.

Giraffes have another amazing property - they sleep less than any other animal. They do not sleep more than two hours a day, and that is enough for them. They can sleep standing up, or they can lie down with their heads resting on their bodies.

Food

giraffe artiodactyl, exclusively herbivore. They are ruminant, the same as, and chew food several times, because the stomach to them is four-chambered.

The main diet of the animal is the leaves of trees and shrubs. Most gourmets prefer acacia. Males choose the highest branches, while they stretch their necks even more and seem even more majestic.

Females do not seek to visually increase their height, they are content with the vegetation that is located at the level of their body. Animals immediately grab the entire branch with their tongue and pull it into their mouths, peeling off all the leaves. In order to feed themselves, giraffes eat up to 20 hours a day, because they need at least 30 kg.

The food they eat is so rich in juices that giraffes have very little need for water. For weeks, or even months, this large animal can go without drinking. When a giraffe drinks, it can immediately drink about 40 liters.

There is no such amount of water at the top, therefore, when drinking, the animal is forced to bow its neck very low, and place its front legs wide apart. This is the most uncomfortable and vulnerable position, it is in this position that the giraffe is clumsy and clumsy.

To get drunk, the giraffe has to take the most vulnerable position.

Therefore, he starts drinking only in full confidence that there is no danger nearby. By the way, this is why giraffes do not like to pluck grass.

Reproduction and lifespan

The mating season and mating itself falls during the rainy season. But the birth itself, most often, occurs from May to August, that is, during the drought months. Pregnancy in a female giraffe lasts more than a year - 457 days, but the baby is born already with a height of about 2 meters. The female brings one cub, rarely, but twins can be born.

Within 15 minutes after birth, the baby rises to its feet and begins to feed on mother's milk. At this time, they are completely defenseless, so they are forced to hide for the entire first week after birth.

Interestingly, after 3-4 weeks of birth, giraffes begin to leave their cubs, leaving them in the care of other adult females. The mother can go 200 meters from the herd, and return only in the evening to feed the baby.

This continues until the cubs can accompany the mother. The babies grow up quickly, but will be with the female for 12-16 months. True, young males are separated from their mother at 12-14 months of age.

They begin to live alone until they become strong, sexually mature males. And sexual maturity in males occurs at 4-5 years. However, giraffes do not start mating until they are 7 years old.

Females, most often, remain in the herd. They become sexually mature at 3-4 years, however, they do not hurry to become mothers for at least a year. These interesting animals live in the wild up to 25 years. Even in captivity, under specially created conditions, under the supervision of veterinarians, the life expectancy of these beauties did not exceed the record mark of 28 years.

GIRAFFE
(Giraffa camelopardalis)- the tallest of modern animals. A mammal of the artiodactyl order, common in sub-Saharan Africa, where the species usually inhabits savannahs with sparsely standing trees and shrubs.

Dimensions. The giraffe is the fourth largest land animal; only the elephant, the hippopotamus and the rhinoceros are larger than the giraffe. The largest males reach a height of 5.9 m to the crown and 3.7 m at the withers with a weight of approx. 2 t (average approx. 5.2 m, 3 m and approx. 1 t). Females are smaller on average: about 4.4 m to the crown, 2.7 m at the withers and weighing 600 kg. The tail of a giraffe, approximately 1 m long, ends in a tassel of black hair.
Wool cover. The skin of a giraffe is densely covered with small and large spots from brown to almost black, which are separated by narrow yellowish or whitish intervals. The shape of the spots is irregular, with smooth or jagged edges, but on the body of each individual, as a rule, they are of the same type. A stiff dark brown mane about 12 cm high grows on the neck.
Neck skeleton. Although the neck of a giraffe exceeds 1.5 m in length, there are only seven cervical vertebrae, like most other mammals, including humans. However, each cervical vertebrae is greatly elongated; in addition, the first thoracic (following the cervical) vertebra is also modified and is very similar to the cervical.
Blood pressure. High blood pressure is required to keep blood from the heart going up to the brain. When the animal's head is raised, this pressure at the level of the brain is the same as in other large mammals. However, when the head is lowered, the pressure in it could dangerously increase if the giraffe's brain were not protected by special vascular formations. There are two of them, and both are located at the base of the skull: here the blood pressure is extinguished in the "wonderful network" (rete mirabile) of thin intertwining vessels, and the valves in the veins allow blood to pass only in one direction (to the heart), preventing it from flowing back to the brain.
Horns. Males and females have a pair of short, blunt horns covered with skin on top of their heads. In males, they are more massive and longer - up to 23 cm. Sometimes there is also a third horn, on the forehead, approximately between the eyes; in males it is more common and more developed. Two bone outgrowths in the upper part of the occiput, to which the cervical muscles and ligaments are attached, can also grow strongly, resembling horns in shape, which are called posterior, or occipital. In some individuals, usually in older males, both the three true horns and the two posterior horns are well developed; they are called "five-horned" giraffes. Sometimes in old males, other bone outgrowths are observed on the skull.
Allures. Giraffes have two main gaits: walk and gallop. In the first case, the animal moves at an amble, i.e. alternately bringing two legs forward, first on one side, then on the other side of the body. The gallop looks awkward; the hind and front legs cross at the same time, but the speed reaches 56 km / h. During the gallop, the neck and head of the giraffe sway strongly, writing out, as it were, a figure eight, and the tail either dangles from side to side, or is lifted high and twisted over the back. The giraffe has sharper vision than any other African mammal, with the possible exception of the cheetah. In addition, huge growth allows you to notice objects at a very long distance.
Food and water. Giraffes are ruminants, like cows. They have a four-chambered stomach, and their jaws are constantly chewing cud—partially chewed food that is regurgitated from the first chamber of the stomach for secondary chewing. The diet of the giraffe consists almost entirely of young shoots of trees and shrubs. Apparently, he prefers thorny acacias, but often also feeds on mimosas, wild apricots and some shrubs, and, if necessary, can eat fresh grass. Giraffes can go without water for many weeks, possibly months.
Activity. Giraffes are diurnal animals, most active in the early morning and evening. They wait out the peak of the heat of the day, either standing with their neck down or their head resting on a tree branch, or lying down, usually with their neck and head up, to watch for danger. Giraffes sleep at night, but only for a few minutes in a row; the duration of deep sleep in total, apparently, does not exceed 20 minutes per night. A sleeping giraffe lies with its neck bent so that its head rests on the underside of its hind limb.
Social behavior and territoriality. Giraffes usually live alone (especially older males) or in small loosely formed groups of two to ten animals, less often in larger herds of up to 70 individuals. Herds can be mixed (males, females, young), bachelor (only young or only mature males), or consist of females and young. The vocalization of giraffes is typical for large herbivores - from snorting and lowing to grunting and roaring. Except for migratory routes, the area of ​​a giraffe's individual range, i.e. the area in which it regularly grazes varies from about 23 to 163 km2, depending on the locality.
Fights. Giraffes are extremely peaceful and even timid animals, but males fight among themselves for leadership, and animals of both sexes come to grips with predators if they cannot escape from them. Within each population, the relationships of adult males are built hierarchically. Hierarchy is maintained through fighting or threatening postures, such as lowering the neck to an almost horizontal position, as if the animal is preparing to butt a rival. When fighting, two or more males stand side by side, facing the same or opposite directions, and swing their necks like giant hammers, trying to hit each other. The fight is often ritualized and does not harm the participants, but sometimes, especially if several males compete for a female ready for mating, it can end in a real knockout. When fighting a predator, the giraffe either slashes down with its front legs or kicks with its hind legs. The giraffe's hooves are very large - the diameter of the front reaches 23 cm. It is known that giraffes killed even attacking lions with a hoof blow.
Enemies. The only serious enemy of adult giraffes (except for humans) is the lion. Most often, he attacks when the giraffe lies or stands, awkwardly bent over, drinking water or nibbling grass. Young giraffes are also preyed upon by other predators, such as leopards and hyenas. Man has long killed giraffes for their meat, tendons (for making strings of bows, ropes and strings of musical instruments), tassels from the tail (for bracelets, fly swatters and threads) and skins (shields, drums, whips, sandals, etc. were made from it .). Uncontrolled hunting has become one of the main reasons for the decline in both the number and distribution of these animals.
Reproduction. Giraffes breed all year round but tend to mate most heavily during the rainy season, such as March. Pregnancy lasts 15 months (457 days), and therefore the largest number of cubs are born in the dry season, i.e. around May to August. Females usually give birth to one calf about every 20-23 months for about 15 years. During childbirth, the mother bends her hind legs; when a calf falls from a height to the ground, the umbilical cord breaks. Newborn, approx. 2 m to the crown and weighing approx. 55 kg, able to get up in an hour, and often 10 minutes after birth. It sucks milk up to 13 months, but begins to pluck leaves at the age of two weeks. Usually the calf stays with the mother for another 2-5 months after the end of feeding. The mortality of young animals is high - up to 68% of calves die in the first year of life. Female giraffes reach sexual maturity at 3.5 years of age and reach their maximum size by 5 years; males mature at 4.5 years of age and are fully grown by seven. In nature, the average life expectancy is 6 years, and the maximum is approx. 26. The longevity record in captivity is 36 years.
Classification and evolutionary history. The giraffe and the okapi (Okapia johnstoni) are the only modern members of the giraffidae family (Giraffidae). It appeared in Central Asia in the early or middle Miocene, i.e. about 15 million years ago, and spread from there to the territory of Europe and Africa. The oldest remains of the modern giraffe were found in Israel and Africa and date back to the early Pleistocene, i.e. their age is approx. 1.5 million years. The range of the modern giraffe has greatly decreased as a result of human hunting and anthropogenic environmental changes. The species was found in northern Africa (in Morocco) 1400 years ago, and in many areas in the west and south of the continent it was exterminated only in the last century. There are usually nine geographical races, or subspecies, distributed from Mali in the west to Somalia in the east and South Africa in the south.

Collier Encyclopedia. - Open society. 2000 .

See what "GIRAFFE" is in other dictionaries:

giraffe- a, m. GIRAFFA s, f. girafe f. 1. Giraffe (giraffe), a two-hoofed animal .. with a low back and an incongruously long neck. Dal. We can show up in cities like giraffes or besiege: it's no joke to see four Russian writers. 19. 4. 1828. P. A. ... ... Historical Dictionary of Gallicisms of the Russian Language

Giraffe (Giraffa camelopardalis), a mammal of the family. giraffe. The body is short, the neck is very long (but there are 7 cervical vertebrae, like in most mammals), body height up to 5.5 m, weight up to 1000 kg (males are larger than females). Sharp fluctuations in blood ... Biological encyclopedic dictionary

Giraffe, cameleopard, okapi Dictionary of Russian synonyms. giraffe n., number of synonyms: 8 animal (277) giraffe ... Synonym dictionary

- (lat. Camelopardalis) circumpolar constellation of the Northern Hemisphere ... Big Encyclopedic Dictionary

- (Camelopardalis), the constellation of the northern part of the sky. Its brightest star, Beta, has a magnitude of 4.0. This constellation includes the star cluster NGC 1502, which can be seen with binoculars ... Scientific and technical encyclopedic dictionary

GIRAFFE, giraffe, male, and GIRAFFE, giraffes, female. (French girafe) (zool.). A ruminant with a very long neck and very long legs, with sandy yellow fur, found in tropical Africa. Explanatory Dictionary of Ushakov. D.N. Ushakov. 1935… … Explanatory Dictionary of Ushakov

Giraffe: interesting facts, photos and a brief description for writing a report or presentation for children in grades 2-3-4.

Habitat

The giraffe is the tallest animal in the world. Giraffes live in the African savannas. Through the fault of man, a significant part of them were exterminated, so today they can no longer be found north of the Sahara. Reserves and reserves today have become the places of their greatest accumulation.

Appearance

First of all, the giraffe is distinguished by its growth and coloration. Its height reaches an average of 5.5 meters. The skin is covered with characteristic dark brown spots. The giraffe has a long neck, on the head are two woolen horns 20 centimeters long each. The weight of an adult is about 900 kilograms. The eyes of a giraffe are black, with very thick eyelashes. Also, the giraffe has a small tail relative to its body size, which resembles a brush.

Reproduction and lifespan

The female giraffe carries the baby for about 14-15 months. A young giraffe is born with a weight of 50 kilograms and a height of 1.5 meters. An hour after birth, the cub stands on its legs. Very soon the baby will be ready to run. For the first 13 months, the mother feeds him with milk. However, starting from the age of two weeks, a small giraffe can eat plant foods.

In the wild, giraffes live for approximately 25 years.

Behavior and nutrition

Giraffes feed exclusively on food of plant origin. Their growth makes it easy to reach the highest branches of trees. It is much more difficult for a giraffe to eat plants from the ground. It's very hard for him to bend over. This also applies to the watering process. An adult giraffe needs to drink at least 35 liters of water daily.

Giraffes prefer to live in small groups or alone. In case of danger, this "overall" animal is capable of speeds up to 55 km / h. Predators rarely show interest in giraffes, since the latter are able to respond to the offender.