While most people think giraffes have long necks to reach food in trees which are high up, scientists believe that their long necks have more to do with fighting. Most of the food that giraffes eat is found in low shrubs or bushes which shows that the purpose of the giraffes meck is not for getting food.
Scientists are still unsure of the exact reason for giraffes extremely long necks but the rough idea they do have is that it is used for fighting. Having a long neck is an advantage to a giraffe that no other animal has.
M o R e - A b O u T - G i R a F f E s
Giraffes are the tallest mammels on earth. Some of the tallest males stand up to 19 feet high ! On average they weigh 1,200 - 4,200 pounds but amazingly still manage to run at a speed of 35 miles per hour. They have seven bones in thier neck; the same amount as we do.
Giraffes can be found in grasslands, savannas, open woodlands and of course, zoos.
F a C t S
- Giraffes only sleep for 10minutes to two hours a day ! The shortest period of sleep of all mammals.
- A giraffes tomgue is approximately 45 cm long which is helpful because they use it to clean bugs off thier faces.
- It has recently been discovered that one way of communication between giraffes is infrasound. Infrasound is a sound frequency that is too low to be heard by humans.
- Giraffes have a high risk of being struck by lightening because of their height. This risk is only in zoos because lightening rarely strikes out in the giraffes natural habitat.
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