Giraffe Facts

Giraffe The scientific classification of the giraffe is the Kingdom: Animalia, Phylum: Chordata, Class: Mammalia, Order: Artiodactyla, Family: Giraffidae, Genus: Giraffa, and Species: G. Camelopardalis (Giraffe: The Facts). Giraffes are found in savannas, grasslands and open woodlands in Africa. Each subspecies lives in a different area of Africa. They range from eastern, central and southern Africa (Basic Facts About Giraffes ). During the dry season, giraffes are found near water holes and rivers. Giraffes are herbivores that browse for their food. They eat leaves, buds, twigs, vines, fruit, flowers, and shrubs. A large portion of their diet comes from acacia, mimosa and wild apricot trees; where they consume the leaves and shoots. Also, they eat shrubs that come from the genera Terminalia and Commiphora. They eat about sixty pounds of food a day (McCarthy). Although, giraffes actually stimulate growth of the acacia trees by increasing shoot production and by spreading seeds through their feces (Giraffe: The Facts). The giraffe uses its …show more content…
Giraffe milk is concentrated and is five times richer than cow’s milk. Growing about an inch a day, the calves start to eat leaves and begin to ruminate at around three to four months old. However, the calves are not completely weaned from their mothers until they are between six to seventeen months old (Giraffe, Giraffa camelopardalis). Eventually, as they grow, they start browsing on shrubs and trees (Giraffe Feeding ). As with other ruminants, giraffes start out with the largest chamber of their stomach as the abomasum when they are still suckling from their mothers. The secondary chamber is the rumen. As they grow older, and start eating leaves and shoots, the rumen grows to allow the stomach to be more efficient in breaking down the fibrous material. Unborn giraffes have a small gall bladder that disappears by the time it is born