Introduction - The giraffe is the tallest animal in the world, attaining a height of 5.5m. Its incredibly long neck accounting for much of its height. The movement and position of the animal's neck are used to express emotion. When it is angry, a giraffe will lower its neck until it is almost horizontal. In submission, it stretches its neck and raises its nose in the air. Male giraffe use their long muscular necks to strike at an opponent's body and wrestle by twining their necks around each other. The loser is pushed off balance and the encounters very rarely lead to serious injury.

Giraffes are fairly social animals and get together in herds from time to time. However, there is no group bonding. Youngsters stay with a few adult females and the males are nomadic and move between groups of females. Giraffes are generally quiet animals that go about their business with an air of serenity. Occasionally, when disturbed, they will snort and, when attacked by predators, they bellow.

You are most likely to see giraffe in Etosha Park, where they are very common, they are also found in the river beds of Kaokoland and the Daan Viljoen reserve outside of Windhoek. Otherwise giraffe can be found on many private game reserves and farms throughout Namibia.

Diet - Because of their very long necks, Giraffes are able to feed on the foliage of trees that is not accessible to other herbivores

Colouring - Buff-coloured hide, with spots of darker brown, provides excellent camouflage, which is another aid to their survival

Breeding - Receptive cows are continuously courted by adult bulls. They have a gestation period of 457 days where after a single calf is born. At birth a calf weighs about 100 Kg and they are weaned between six to eight months

Size - Adult males generally reach a height of about 5 metres and females about 4,5 metres. Big males can weigh a massive 1 200 kilograms while females usually weigh some 800 to 900 kilograms

Wildlife Namibia

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