GIRAFFE: CHARACTERISTICS, HABITAT, REPRODUCTION, FEEDING - BIOLOGY - 2024

The giraffe (Giraffa camelopardalis) is a ruminant mammal that is part of the Giraffidae family. Its main characteristic is a long neck, whose cervical vertebrae are elongated. This is used in the fights between the males and to reach the leaves of the canopy of the trees.

In addition, its entire body has a pattern of brown, orange or brown spots, which stand out against a light background. In the upper part of the head it has two osicons, which are bony protrusions, covered with skin and fur.

Giraffe. Source: © Hans Hillewaert

Its legs are robust and long, the front legs being slightly longer than the back ones. The giraffe has two steps: walking and galloping. When walking, it moves the legs on one side of the body in unison, and then do the same with the other side.

When galloping, the hind legs move around the forelegs, before they move forward. To maintain momentum and balance, the animal moves its neck and head back and forth.

Reproduction

Sexual maturity, in both sexes, can be reached when they reach 5 or 6 years, with the average age for the first birth being around six and a half years.

Females are polystrous, not seasonal. Unlike the vast majority of ungulates, giraffes can mate at any time of the year. However, the highest reproductive frequency occurs during the rainy season.

Regarding this, the receptivity of the female is limited to one or two days in the reproductive cycle, which lasts approximately two weeks.

Courtship and copulation

Males can identify the reproductive status of females. Thus, they could focus their search and mating effort on those females that are suitable to mate, reducing metabolic costs.

The males frequently analyze the urine of the females, in order to determine the estrus. When the male detects a female in heat, he initiates courtship, at which point he keeps the group's subordinates away.

Some of the courtship behaviors consist of licking the female's tail, placing her neck and head on it, or pushing her with her osicones.

During copulation, the male stands on its two hind legs, raising its head. At the same time, it supports the forelimbs on the sides of the female's body.

Gestation

Gestation lasts between 430 and 490 days, being the second longest process of this type among terrestrial mammals. Giraffes are generally uniparous, giving birth to a calf that could weigh 50 to 70 kilograms.

Estrus is observed again two to three weeks after delivery. This may indicate that the Giraffa camelopardalis is in postpartum estrus. If during this stage the female does not mate, she can enter a lactational anestrus phase.

Labor occurs standing up. The calf of the calf appears first, followed by the head and front legs. When it falls to the ground, the mother cuts the umbilical cord. The female helps the newborn to get up and after a few hours, the young can run.

Feeding

The diet of the Giraffa camelopardalis is based mainly on flowers, leaves, fruits and seed pods. On a daily basis, it can eat approximately 74 kilograms of plant material. In those areas where the soil is high in salt or minerals, it also tends to eat soil.

Although he prefers fresh acacia leaves, he also eats Mimosa pudica, Prunus armeniaca, Combretum micranthum, and Terminalia harrisonia. Likewise, they consume Lonchocarpus, Pterocarpus cassia, Grewia, Ziziphus, Spirostachys africana, Peltophorum africanum and Pappea capensis.

Specialists point out that the predilection for the Acacieae subfamily and the Terminalia and Commiphora and Terminalia genera is due to the fact that these plants are an important source of protein and calcium, which contribute to the proper growth of the giraffe. They can also include grasses, fruits and shrubs in their diet, especially those that are juicy, as they provide water to the body.

In the wet season, food is plentiful, so this ruminant mammal is dispersed in the habitat. On the contrary, in the summer it tends to gather around evergreen trees.

The highest feeding point is during sunrise and sunset. The rest of the day, especially at night, ruminates.

Digestive system

The giraffe has a prehensile tongue, which is about 18 inches long. It is a purplish black hue. She uses it to grasp the leaves and to clean her nostrils. The upper lip is also prehensile and covered with hairs, to avoid being injured when the plant has thorns.

Regarding the dentition, the canines and incisors are long, while the premolars and molars are small.

This species has strong esophageal muscles, which allow it to regurgitate food, from the stomach to the neck and mouth, where it ruminates. Likewise, it has four stomachs. The first is specialized for a diet rich in cellulose, a difficult-to-digest molecule.

The intestines can measure more than 70 meters in length, while the liver is compact and thick. Generally, during the fetal stage they have a gallbladder, an organ that usually disappears before birth.

Food process

The giraffe uses its long neck to forage in the canopy of trees. However, it can also grasp the low branches with its mouth and tongue, helping itself with a movement of the head, which helps to pull them off.

Although acacia trees have thorns, the teeth crush them. As a ruminant animal, the giraffe first chews the food and then swallows it to continue digestion. Subsequently, the food bolus is taken back to the mouth, where it is regurgitated.

Behavior

Social

Giraffes exhibit a complex social pattern, characterized by variability in the composition of subgroups. Thus, while mothers and their young are stable together, males tend to roam alone. However, eventually, these could mate or join young females.

Those who are in the juvenile stage participate in fights and could form a group of singles or of adult and young females.

These mammals establish long-term social ties, being able to form regular associations, based on sex or kinship. Thus, they tend to organize communities within a large community, where they are generally segregated by sex.

This species is not territorial, but its home ranges may vary depending on rainfall and proximity to urbanized areas.

Defending

The male giraffe uses its long neck as a weapon in combat, a behavior known as "strangulation." In this way, it tries to establish dominance, which guarantees, among other things, reproductive success.

In low-intensity combat, the males rub and support their necks with each other. The one who manages to stay upright for the longest time is the winner.

Another situation that occurs is active combat. In this, the animals extend their front legs and balance on them, while trying to hit the osicones. The power of the blow will depend, among other things, on the weight of the skull. This behavior can last up to 30 minutes.

Most of the time, these encounters cause serious injuries, which can sometimes result in injuries to the neck, jaw, or even death.

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