One of the most interesting and unusual animals on the planet is the inhabitant of the African continent giraffe. Few Europeans saw it in reality and therefore have no idea which animal is the tallest in the world, what it looks like, what lifestyle it leads. But the interesting fact is that he is loved all over the world. The giraffe is a very graceful and graceful animal. However, it is called the tallest animal on the planet for a reason, but because of its truly gigantic size. An adult can reach 6 meters and weigh more than a ton. The main distinguishing feature of these animals is their neck, which is much larger than the body.
In this article we will look at which animal is the tallest in the world, its lifestyle and the history of the discovery of the family.
History of the species
For the first time people learned about the existence of the giraffe about 40 thousand years ago. It was at this time that the ancestors of modern man began the development of the African continent. Then mankind found out which animal is the mosthighest in the world. In support of this, there are a number of rock paintings and hieroglyphs that tell of a meeting with a giraffe. They were carved about forty thousand years ago on stones that were located on the territory of present-day Libya. These drawings depict both the animals themselves and scenes of people communicating with them. So, in one of the rock paintings you can see a man sitting on the back of a giraffe. Scientists are completely unclear whether this image was a fantasy of an artist or the ancient ancestors of man really managed to domesticate the tallest animal in the world and use it as a horse.
Also, historical facts indicate that giraffes were known in the Roman Empire during the time of Julius Caesar. It was then that the ancient Romans learned which animal is the tallest in existence. This happened thanks to Arab traders who brought strange birds and animals to the Roman markets. A few hundred years later, Europeans were able to take a good look at this inhabitant of Africa, when Lorenzo de Medici in the middle of the fifteenth century received a giraffe as a gift from one of the Arab sheikhs.
After another 300 years, Europe learned about the giraffe thanks to another gift. French King Charles X received a giraffe from an Egyptian pasha in 1825. It is noteworthy that then it did not become the property of only the royal court. On the contrary, the tallest animal, the giraffe, was shown to everyone in the Place de Paris. This mammal got its name from Carl Linnaeus. In Latin, it is included in the animal classifier as Giraffa camelopardalis. The first part of the name comes from the Arabic word"zarafa", which means "smart". The second - literally means "leopard camel".
Where lives
A large number of archaeological finds suggest that giraffe-like mammals lived in the Nile Delta, but were all exterminated during the existence of Ancient Egypt.
Today, the habitat of these graceful animals is exclusively the African continent. At the same time, giraffes are found in almost all its parts. The family itself is divided into 9 subspecies. Each of them lives in a certain part of Africa and differs from others in color. This division is due to the fact that animals, from the moment of their distribution on the mainland, have adapted to the environment, the conditions of the landscape and the colors that prevail in it. So, for example, the Angolan species of giraffes has a pale coat color, which is similar in shade to desert sand.
Giraffe lifestyle
These mammals prefer to live in small groups. At the same time, the number of groups can vary from 4 to 30 individuals. In them, animals are not strongly attached to each other. It is enough for them to realize that relatives are grazing nearby, often they do not even contact each other. This is due to the fact that the animals are huge and they do not have many enemies. Therefore, there is no need to unite in large herds and interact closely.
Observations of zoologists revealed an interesting fact. Very often, groups of giraffes unite with herds of others.animals such as antelope. This is done in order to facilitate the protection of young animals from lions. Predators do not attack adults - cubs become their victims. Giraffes follow with herds of antelopes until they find a suitable pasture. When the place is chosen, they leave the herd. There are no leaders in giraffe groups, but older animals enjoy great authority.
The food of the tallest animal, what is it?
The tallest animal prefers to eat leaves, flowers and all kinds of fruits that are found in abundance in Africa. In addition, in savannah conditions, where the soil is saturated with minerals, they often use the soil for food. Giraffes are ruminants and have a four-chambered stomach. The process of chewing helps them a lot when traveling. Thanks to him, they increase the time between meals. Long necks allow them to reach leaves and fruits from the very tops of trees.
The main enemies of the giraffe
The greatest danger to these animals is represented by predators of the cat family. Often the giraffe becomes a victim of lions and leopards. In addition, cases of attacks by smaller predators, which are hyenas, have been repeatedly noted. It is noteworthy that most often the victims are young giraffes that are not large enough to protect themselves. Adults are able to fend for themselves. A powerful blow of muscular legs with massive hooves is capable of inflicting fatal injuries on a lion. In addition, the danger lies in wait for giraffes at watering places, since inThe waters of Africa are inhabited by formidable predators - crocodiles.
