The Lofty Giraffe

It goes without saying that giraffes are very tall animals; they are the tallest mammals on Earth. Factually, the average height of a giraffe is around 16-18 feet tall; its legs are taller than most humans. Many people first believed the giraffe was a cross between a leopard and a camel. The male giraffe is both taller and heavier than the female.

Giraffes eat a lot more than people may think; however, their diets mainly consist of leaves and twigs. Their long tongues help them eat because they allow the giraffe to pull leaves off of the trees. Giraffes spend most of their day eating, and a full-grown giraffe consumes over 100 pounds per day. They mainly seek acacia trees. Giraffes do not need to drink much water; this helps them avoid predators, since they become easy prey while drinking. 

 A unique aspect of a giraffe is the way they walk. When giraffes walk, they move both legs on one side of their bodies and then both legs on the other side. When they run, they run like other mammals and can reach speeds up to thirty-five miles per hour at full speed, but only in brief spurts. Giraffes sleep fewer than two hours a day and usually sleep lying down; however, they can sleep while standing up but only for short periods of time. 

Giraffes typically live up to twenty-five years in the wild. Although giraffes are not considered critically endangered, their current natural habitat creates a high vulnerability that causes an elevated chance of extinction. Giraffes are not completely helpless to danger since they can kick very powerfully. A kick from a giraffe can be very dangerous because their hooves are the size of dinner plates. Giraffes are fascinating animals with their many unique characteristics.

Giraffes are getting lower in their numbers, but we can help bring those numbers back up. You can help donate and support areas where giraffes habitats are located and help provide more acacia trees, due to it being their main food source. You can also help by providing more food and other resources to Sudan in order to stop the villages from resorting to eating giraffe meat. There are so many ways to help this unique species of animal and they need our help if they are going to continue to survive.