Giraffe Species

Jamar Fraction
Bio 100
8:30 Class
 Scientific name for Giraffe
Only one species of giraffe, but separated into sub-species based on size color and pattern.

 Kingdom- Animali

 Phylum- Chordata

 Class- Mammalia

 Order- Artiodactyla

 Family- Giraffidae

 Genus- Giraffa

 Species: Giraffa camelopardallis

 Introduction
 Acquires it’s nutrients from plant-
 Has a heart that weighs around 25lbs
which provides it the ability to
maintain a blood pressure double of
what is considered “normal” for a
human
 Only 9 (sub)species currently
recognized
 The tallest living terrestrial animal
 Easily recognizable due to extremely
long neck and legs and distinctive coat
pattern
 Giraffe have the same number of
vertebrae as humans
based foods by fermenting it in a
specialized stomach prior to digesting
it
 Introduction, continued

 Will drink water when it is available, but obtains most of the

needed water from plants they eat
 Gestation period of 14-15 months, birth to 1 baby, twins are a
rarity.
 Have amazing smell, hearing and vision senses

 Neck/head weighs around 550 pounds

 Stride range around 15 feet when walking, and when alarmed

can reach speeds of 36 mph in short bursts
 Often have tickbirds (Red-billed Oxpecker) on their backs and
necks which eat the insects that live in the giraffe’s coat
 The Nubian Giraffe
G. c. Camelopardalis- nominotypical subspecies

 Found on the east side of South

Sudan and south-western
Ethiopia
 Fewer than 250 are believed to
still exist in the wild as of 2010
 Average shoulder heights range
between 16-19 ft.
 Distinguishable by very defined
brown facial spots surrounded by
white
 Generally do not have spot son
their underbellies
The Reticulated Giraffe
G. c. reticulata

 Also known as the Somali

Giraffe
 Native to north-eastern
Kenya, southern Ethiopia,
and Somalia
 Most well-known
subspecies, most common
giraffe in zoos
 Polygonal large spot shapes
surrounded by thin white
lines
 The Angolan Giraffe
G. c. angolensis

Despite name, is no longer found in Angola


Now ranges across Namibia, south-west Zambia,

Botswana and into western Zimbabwe
Often called the “smokey”

giraffe
Light in color with large

uneven, notched, spots
covering
the entirety of it’s legs
 The Kordofan Giraffe
G. c. antiquorum

 Young giraffe noises (yes, they

really do have vocal chords!)
 Located in southern Chad,
Central African Republic,
north Cameroon, and North-
east DR Congo
 Recognizable by small,
irregular spots on the inner
legs
 Genetic testing to the ”West
African” giraffe in European
zoos revealed that they are all
Kordofan giraffe
The Masai Giraffe
G. c. tippelskirchi

 Jagged, irregular, star-like

spots

 Give birth standing up- as

do the other sub-species

 Due to the area, most of the

calves die within the first
few months of life due to
predators

 Referred to as the
“Kilimanjaro Giraffe”
 Rothschild’s
Giraffe
G. c. rothschildi
• Located in parts of Uganda
and Kenya.
• This subspecies has 5
“horns”
• ~ 700 in the wild, with
around 450 in captivity
(both as of 2010)
• Most have considerably
darker spots than the other
subspecies
 South African Giraffe
G. c. giraffa

 Recognizable by brown
rounded or blotchy spots
on light-tan background

 Has been found in found in

South Africa, Namibia,
Botswana, Zimbabwe, and
Mozambique

 ~12,000 estimated to still

remain in the wild
The Rhodesian Giraffe
G. c. thornicrofti

 Called the Thornicroft

giraffe after Harry S.
Thornicroft

 Only lives in the Luangwa

Valley in Zambia

 None exist in zoos

 Very dark colored tongues

 Male coat darkens with

age, mostly in the spots
 The West
African Giraffe
G. c. peralta
• Lives in south-western
Niger
• Has the lightest coloring of
all subspecies
• Spots are lobe-shaped
• By far the most
endangered subspecies,
with only ~310 remaining
in the wild
• Conservation of the
subspecies is due to the
habitat maintenance efforts
and harsh giraffe-poaching
laws of the Nigerian
government
Okapi Okapia johnstoni
• Closest living relative to giraffe
• Considerably smaller neck in comparison to giraffe
• Dark backs with stripes on the front and rear legs
• Classified as endangered as of 2013
• Depicted on the 50 Congolese Francs banknote
 Photo Work Cited
 Title page
 Unknown. Giraffe Side #1. San Diego Zoo. San Diego, California. San Diego Zoo Children‘s website. 2 Nov. 2014. http
://kids.sandiegozoo.org/animals/mammals/giraffe

 Slide 2 picture
 Nancy Vandermey. Giraffe. Sep/Oct 2000. The Cat House. Rosamond, California. The Cat House. 2 Nov. 2014 http
://www.cathouse-fcc.org/imgs/giraffewalk.jpg

 Slide 3 picture
 Greg Willis. Giraffe Skin. 11 Oct 2006. Denver, Colorado. 2 Nov. 2014 http://www.flickr.com/photos/gregw66/3688068716/

 Slide 4 picture
 H. Vannoy Davis. Nubian Giraffe. 1973. San Diego Zoo. San Diego, California. CalPhotos. 2 Nov. 2014
http://calphotos.berkeley.edu/cgi/img_query?enlarge=1340+3162+2722+0101

 Slide 5 picture
 Steven Shuel. Neck and head extended into an acacia tree to eat. 2014. Redlands, California. Cannundrum Blog. 2 Nov. 2014
http://cannundrum.blogspot.com/2014/08/reticulated-giraffe.html

 Slide 6 picture
 Tim May. Angolan Giraffe. 26 May 2011. Zoo Dortmund Germany. London, England. 2 Nov. 2014 http://www.zoochat.com
/126/angolan-giraffe-dortmund-26th-may-2011-a-217526/
 Continued
 Slide 7 picture
 Simon J. Tonge. Bull. 2010. Zoo Doue La Fontaine, France. London, England. CalPhotos. 2 Nov. 2014.
http://calphotos.berkeley.edu/cgi/img_query?seq_num=434778&one=T

 Slide 8 Picture
 Marty Cohen. Masai Giraffe Pattern. 2011. Masai Mara, Kenya. San Francisco, California. Marty Cohen
Photography. 2 Nov. 2014. http://www.martycohenphotography.com/2011/08/28/masai-giraffe-pattern/

 Slide 9 Picture #1
 Galen R. Frysinger. Rothschild’s Giraffe. Sep 15 2001. Murchison Falls National Park, Uganda. Galen Frysinger
Website. 2 Nov. 2014 http://www.galenfrysinger.com/murchison_fall_national_park.htm

 Slide 9 Picture #2
 Galen R. Frysinger. Another Rothschild’s Giraffe. Sep 15 2001. Murchison Falls National Park, Uganda. Galen
Frysinger Website. 2 Nov. 2014 http://www.galenfrysinger.com/murchison_fall_national_park.htm

 Slide 10 Picture
 D. Gordon E. Robertson. Southern African Giraffes, three bulls in central Kruger Park, South Africa. Two in front
are fighting ("necking”). 10 Apr. 2005. Wikipedia Commons. 2 Nov. 2014
http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:South_African_Giraffes,_fighting.jpg

 Slide 11 Picture
 Peter Geraerdts. 2 Nov. 2014 https://bioweb.uwlax.edu/bio203/s2014/flores_alex/interactions.htm
 Continued

 Slide 12 picture
 Shanna Baker. 2010. Southern Nigerian Desert. The
Guardian website. 2 Nov. 2014
http://www.theguardian.com/environment/gallery/2
010/feb/15/giraffe-west-africa-conservation

 Slide 13 picture
 Unknown photographer. Upulu Center, DR Congo. Call
From the Wild website. 2 Nov 2014
http://www.callfromthewild.org/Stories/135/The_elu
sive_okapi_(Maiko_National_Park,_DR_Congo)
 Bibliography

 “Giraffe- The Facts” Giraffe Conservation Foundation: FAQ. Web. 28 Oct. 2014 http
://www.giraffeconservation.org/giraffe_facts.php?pgid=6

 “THE ELUSIVE OKAPI (MAIKO NATIONAL PARK, DR CONGO)“ Call from the Wild:
Wildlife. Web. 2 Nov. 2014
http://www.callfromthewild.org/Stories/135/The_elusive_okapi_(Maiko_National_Par
k,_DR_Congo)

 Peterson, Dale. Giraffe Reflections. China: The Regents of The University of California,
2013. Print.