For obvious reasons, giraffes are the tallest animals in the world. With an eternal neck like that, no wonder you might say! It almost seems as if they come from another planet!
Apart from its unmistakably long and unusual neck, what do you really know about the giraffe??? Any ideas? Why don't we find out together?
Its Tongue
Thankfully the giraffe's tongue is not as imposing as its neck, yet it is still worth mentioning (around 45 cm). Why that long? Well you see, the animal's favorite food comes from the acacia tree. For most animals acacia leaves are unattainable due to the huge thorns on the tree (several cm long; trust me you wouldn't want to get some of those anywhere near you). For the giraffe however, this is no issue whatsoever; thanks to its prehensile lip and tongue it can maneuver a way around thorns to reach its treat. Et voila! Easy, huh?! ;)
The tongue's colour is also quite intriguing. It has a distinctive purple bluish colour, which acts as natural sunscreen!
Its Neck
A long neck is extremely advantageous to reach the highest leaves from trees. Do you know how many bones form a giraffe's neck? 20? 30? 50? NOT EVEN CLOSE!
Let me give you a hint: how many vertebrae do we have in our neck?
If you're still wondering the answer's 7; exactly the same as the giraffe! Amazing, isn't it?! Of course giraffe vertebrae are just a little larger (up to 25 cm long), and heavier than ours :).
Its Unique Pattern
Giraffes have a superb patterned skin that looks slightly like burnt pop corn! They are a beauty to watch, and their coat is like no other; perhaps the only animal that could rival its originality would be the leopard!
Hello world
The gestation period for the animal is around 15 months, and they usually breed all year round. Only one calf is born at a time (twins are extremely rare).
Like most births it can be quite traumatizing for the new being. Nonetheless, for baby giraffe in particular it is a very uncharacteristic welcome; the calf makes a 1.8 m plunge onto the ground. Hard to imagine, right? While the fall does not hurt the calf, it enables it to take its first deep breath. After as little as an hour, the baby will be up and running as if nothing had just happened! Truly fascinating!!!
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