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The Truth about Giraffes

Giraffes are the tallest mammals in the world. They grow up to 18 feet tall. They weigh between 2000 and 4000 pounds. Their bodies from front to hind legs are about 5 feet long. Giraffes are known for a beautiful pattern on their skin: large, brown spots on the yellowish background. Differences in pattern divide giraffes into two main groups: reticulated giraffes and blotched giraffes. The spots of reticulated giraffes are large, very similar in shape, and not much of the background is visible. It seems that the animal is all brown, but it is covered with a yellowish net. This kind of giraffe has no pattern below the knees. Blotched giraffes have a pattern that is not so regular. The spots have odd shapes and sizes. You can see more of the background, and its color is darker. Blotched giraffes are divided into smaller groups still depending on how their pattern looks like. The pattern of each giraffe is unique, and there are no two identical giraffes in the world.


Giraffes shot 1
Giraffes have a very long neck. It is usually about 8 to 10 feet long. Just like a human's neck it contains only 7 vertebrae bones (neck bones), what makes the giraffe's neck hard to bend. Along the neck there is a short, stiff mane. Giraffe's legs are long and thin. They are about 5 to 6 feet long, ended witch hooves. Front legs are placed between hind (back) legs. Such a long legs make giraffes very good runners. They can run as fast as 35 miles per hour.

Scientists call giraffes diurnal and nocturnal animals. It means that giraffes enjoy day and night hours. They do sleep, but only about 3 to 4 hours a day. The rest of the time they stay awake usually walking and browsing in the trees. They are gentle animals, who like peaceful and quiet life, and they almost never make a noise. Only sometimes they grunt or snort to communicate each other.

They have a very good vision and mostly communicate with their eyes.

Giraffes live in groups called herds. There are usually 5 to 10 of them in the herd. Giraffes live for 20 to 25 years, and their spots get darker with the age.

Giraffe's head may seem small compared to the body, but it really is a pretty large size: about 2 feet long. Lips are very flexible. Inside the mouth there is a very long, prehensile tongue.

Giraffes shot 2

Each giraffe has at least 2 horns on its head. The horns are made out of bone and covered with skin. There is also a rather large bump (called central swelling) between the giraffe's eyes. Sometimes it becomes so large that it looks like an additional horn. Giraffe's tail is about 3 feet long, and it ends with a tassel of hair.

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