Giraffe

The giraffe is a mammal and it belongs to Africa. It is the tallest of all animal species. Their average height is between fifteen to nineteen feet and they weight about 18000 kg. Both Giraffe sexes have horns, although the horns of a female are smaller. Giraffes have long necks, which they use to browse the leaves of trees. They possess seven vertebrae in the neck that are elongated. Female giraffes associate in groups of a dozen or so members, occasionally including a few younger males. Younger males tend to live in bachelor herds, with older males often leading solitary lives. Within a few hours of being born, young ones can run around and are indistinguishable. The young can fall prey to lions, leopards, spotted hyenas, and wild dogs. The giraffe browses on the twigs of trees, preferring trees of the genus Mimosa; but it appears that it can live without inconvenience on other vegetable food. A giraffe can eat 60 kg of leaves daily. A giraffe will easily clean off any bugs that appear on its face with its extremely long tongue which is about 18 inches. The giraffe has one of the shortest sleep requirements of any mammal. Giraffes are hunted for their hides, hair, and meat. An unexpected danger to giraffes in captivity is that, as they are typically the tallest objects in a zoo, giraffes are at increased risk of being struck by lightning.