Ciao everyone! Here is this week’s joke:

What do you get when two giraffes collide?

A giraffic-jam!

I would rate this joke a 10/10 out of personal bias because giraffes are my favorite animals. Thus, this post will pay homage to one of the wackiest animals to roam the Earth.

Giraffa Camelopardalis, more commonly known as the giraffe, is known to be the tallest mammal in the world and is a distant relative to the camel. Let’s pull a Steve Irwin and do an overview:

According to the African Wildlife Foundation, giraffes, on average, are about 5.7 meters tall from the ground to their horns, which is equivalent to 18.7 feet. Males weigh around 1,930 kilograms and females weigh around 1,180 kilograms, respectively equating to 4,254 pounds and 2,601 pounds. Giraffes can be found in habitats that are filled with open grassy plains and dense shaded forests. As a native to more than 15 African countries, you’ll most likely find giraffes milling around Kenya, South Africa, Botswana, Tanzania, Namibia, and Cameroon. I would love to someday do one of those safaris in South Africa and then stay at the giraffe hotels.

What else do we know about this species? Well, they have a life span around 10 to 15 years in the wild and have a gestation period between 13 to 15 months. Day-to-day functions are sponsored by valves in the blood vessels in giraffes’ necks to prevent the backwards flow and potential build up of blood, which could be extremely dangerous.

When residing in the nearest savannah or woodlands in the Sahara, watering holes may be scarce, so giraffes can go days without drinking. Additionally, as an herbivore, you can definitely count on giraffes snacking on the nearest acacia tree, although they do eat over 93 other varieties of plants. The African Wildlife Foundation reports that, “They feed 16 to 20 hours a day, but may only consume about 30 kilograms (about 30 pounds) of foliage during that time. These two-ton mammals can survive on as little as seven kilograms (15 pounds) of foliage per day.” I think my brother eats more than them to be honest.

Anatomically, giraffes also pose as a natural phenomenon. These desert-dwellers have been heavily studied in fields of Darwinian Evolution and developmental biology, since they vastly differ from most known animals. Earlier ancestors with longer necks had less competition for food sources, so that favorable trait was passed on. 

With lengthy necks and spindly legs, the giraffe is often underestimated as a primary predator in food webs. With the capability to run 32-60 km/hr (20-37 mph), giraffes can run for long distances to avoid starving lions, leopards, hyenas, and crocodiles. When they’re unable to run away from their problems, as inevitable as it is, the giraffe will use the horns on its head, called ossicones, to battery ram itself into predators. Now this is a smackdown that puts giraffes, quite literally, on another level. Talk about survival of the fittest, or rather, the tallest.

he needs your help 🙁

However, giraffes are currently an endangered species due to poaching, and I am truly disgusted by this. I really hope that this illegal hunting and trafficking can be prevented, since this breed plays a significant role in several ecosystems. I hope to spread awareness regarding this issue and learn as much as we can about giraffes to preserve their colonies and habitats.

Now, it’s my turn to make like a tree and get out of here. Until next time my jokers!

Reference: African Wildlife Foundation. “The World’s Tallest Mammal Is at Risk of Becoming Extinct

         In the Wild.” African Wildlife Foundation, https://www.awf.org/wildlife-conservation/giraffe.