World Giraffe Day (WGD) is celebrated annually on June 21. It is an exciting opportunity to celebrate the world’s tallest animal. June 21 is the longest day of the year or the longest night for people living in the Southern Hemisphere, so it makes sense to celebrate World Giraffe Day on the 21st of June. It was an initiative of the Giraffe Conservation Foundation (GCF). Unfortunately, the population of these terrestrial mammals is quickly declining. Habitat loss, illegal hunting, and climate change are the main threats to their population and wellbeing. WGD provides an opportunity to create awareness about the plight of giraffes.
World Giraffe Day will be celebrated on Friday, June 21, 2024.
Interesting Facts About Giraffes
Let’s find out more about these marvelous creatures on World Giraffe Day.
They can grow over 19 feet tall. This exceptional height allows them to look out for predators and eat leaves from the treetops where other herbivores cannot reach.
Giraffes have about 6 feet long legs and their long legs allow them to attain a top speed of 35 mph for short distances.
Females give birth to a single calf after a pregnancy of 16 months. At birth, baby giraffes are about 6 feet tall and they can grow an inch a day during their first week.
Even their tongue is very long, which can be stretched over 50 cm.
Giraffes only need to drink water once every few days because their leafy diet provides them the required moisture.
These gentle giants of Africa have spotted patterns on coats. Like human fingerprints, every giraffe has a unique pattern of spots.
Newborns can stand in about half an hour after the birth, walk within an hour, and run with their mothers in ten hours.
While lions are the main predators of giraffes, other animals such as leopards and hyenas also prey upon them.
Giraffes have a massive and exceptionally strong heart. Their hearts are about 2 ft long and weigh approximately 25 pounds, that’s equal to about 40 human hearts. Also, their blood pressure can be two times higher than other animals. This is to push the blood up their long necks to the brain.
They have excellent eyesight and can spot a predator from far away.
While their neck is the longest of any animal, but it has only 7 bones like humans and other mammals with much shorter necks.
They spend about 16 to 20 hours a day eating. Moreover, they can eat about 45 kg of food in a day.
Giraffes are capable of sleeping only 5 minutes a day. They can survive on 5 to 30 minutes of sleep each day which they get through a series of two-minute naps.
They live in unstable groups called towers.
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