Why do we no longer have short neck giraffes?
Since the days of Charles Darwin, the long necks of giraffes have been a textbook example of evolution. The theory goes that as giraffe ancestors competed for food, those with longer necks were able to reach higher leaves, getting a leg — or neck — up over shorter animals.
Feeding. With the aid of its long neck, a giraffe is able to reach leaves, fruit and flowers high up in Vachellia or Senegalia (formerly Acacia) and other sought after tree species. Giraffe are thus equipped to exploit a band of foliage beyond the reach of all other terrestrial browsers, except for elephant.
For years, there has been scant fossil evidence showing how the giraffe evolved to have such an admirably long neck. But now, the remains of a 7-million-year-old creature with a shorter neck provide proof that the giraffe's iconic feature evolved in stages, lengthening over time, a new study finds.
Giraffes Didn't Evolve Long Necks Simply to Reach Tree Leaves, New Study Shows. In a study that shows just how cool giraffes can get, researchers have tested a hypothesis that the giraffe's long neck actually helps regulate their body temperature.
Samotherium, which lived in the open woodlands of Eurasia about 7 million years ago, had a neck about 1 meter long—about half the length of that of today's giraffes. (And like the vast majority of mammals, from tiny mice to towering giraffes, it had seven neck vertebrae.)
Are giraffes related to dinosaurs? No, giraffes are not related to dinosaurs. Dinosaurs lived about 245 and 66 million years ago, while giraffes existed only 8 million years ago.
Giraffes are ruminants and have a stomach with four compartments that digests the leaves they eat. When giraffes aren't eating, they're chewing their cud.
For the most part, giraffes tend to sleep during the night, although they do get in some quick naps throughout the day. Giraffes can sleep standing up as well as lying down, and their sleep cycles are quite short, lasting 35 minutes or shorter. Elephants are another animal that sleep very little.
If you've ever been lucky enough to be licked by a giraffe, you'll notice that their 50cm-long tongues can appear purple, bluish or almost black in colour. This is due to the density of dark 'melanin' colour pigments in them.
Long necks mean that giraffes don't have as much competition for food. But male dominance behavior is likely the stronger evolutionary force. Modern male giraffes partake in a behavior called necking, where they fight each other by bashing necks. The longer and stronger the neck, the more territory and mates.
Are giraffes related to horses?
No, giraffes are not related to horses. While both animals are the same in many ways, both of them come from two different families. Giraffes come from the even-toed ungulate family, or also known as Artiodactyla.
Life Cycle: Giraffes can live as long as 25 years. Feeding: Giraffes eat a very wide variety of trees and shrubs and spend a large part of each day browsing. Threats: Giraffes have experienced severe habitat loss and fragmentation as a result of the expansion of human activities into their habitats.
"A neck allowed for improved movement and dexterity in terrestrial and aerial environments," says Andrew Bass, Cornell professor of neurobiology and behavior, and an author on the paper. "This innovation in biomechanics evolved hand-in-hand with changes in how the nervous system controls our limbs."
In an aggressive fight, giraffes throw punches with the force of their large necks and can stab each other with their ossicones — the small horn-like knobs on their heads.
Giraffes use their height to good advantage and browse on leaves and buds in treetops that few other animals can reach (acacias are a favorite). Even the giraffe's tongue is long! The 21-inch tongue helps them pluck tasty morsels from branches.
blue Yes, its blood is blue.
In fact, birds are commonly thought to be the only animals around today that are direct descendants of dinosaurs. So next time you visit a farm, take a moment to think about it. All those squawking chickens are actually the closest living relatives of the most incredible predator the world has ever known!
The giraffe exhibits extraordinary hemodynamics including a high blood pressure at heart level. As part of a larger study, we hypothesized that its blood volume is 75–80 ml/kg body weight (b. wt.) as in other mammals.
Palaeontologists have long accepted that birds are a form of dinosaur. Now the theory that the most feared dinosaur of all, Tyrannosaurus Rex, evolved into the modern-day chicken has been given scientific backing with the discovery of some pre-historic collagen.
The okapi is indeed the only living relative of the giraffe. Like a giraffe, an okapi has very large, upright ears, which catch even slight sounds. An okapi also has a long, dark, prehensile tongue, like a giraffe's, to help it strip the buds and young leaves from the understory brush of its rainforest home.
Are giraffes friendly?
Giraffes are friendly animals by nature. Wild giraffes live in herds and spend their time traveling, eating, and resting together. Ironically, a group of giraffes is called a tower! Not only do they enjoy being surrounded by other giraffes, they often enjoy the humans as well.
The new research shows that dolphins have the longest memory yet known in any species other than people.
Logically, a giraffe's genitals are located near the top of its legs, making its intimate bits also about 5 1/2 – 6 ft off the ground (give or take the “hang time” of the organ in question).
Physically, giraffes are quiet, extremely tall, have excellent eyesight and are considered very intelligent. The intelligence of giraffes is a factor in how quickly they adapt behaviourally in response to changing external stimuli.
Giraffes Only Sleep For Five Minutes At A Time.