Giraffes are a ruminant cloven-hoofed animal growing in Africa. Their Latin name means "Camel with leopard print". They are the highest living terrestrial animals in the world.
Giraffes inhabit tropical and subtropical savanna, scrub, open Acacia woodland, arid and open savanna, and semi desert with few trees in Africa. They are herbivores and feed mainly on leaves and twigs. Giraffes live for about 27 years in the wild and more than 29 years in the zoo. They are native to Africa, mainly distributed in the east of Transvaal, natal and Northern Botswana from sub-Saharan to South Africa. It has disappeared from most parts of West Africa, except for some surviving individuals in Niger. Giraffes have been reintroduced into the hunting ranks of South Africa. They are the national beast of South Africa.
Giraffes are gentle and courteous among groups. They come and go with each other tenderly. They are close to each other and take care of each other. Their long legs often touch each other. This situation usually lasts for a long time, but they never quarrel or contradict because of such small things. This closeness to each other is not only out of a kind of warmth, but also for safety. A kind of warmth has silently spread to every giraffe in the cluster. They often meet each other head and neck, and communicate gently and carefully, like a cluster of tall plantain trees, growing from the same root and waiting for each other. Their actions are so easy-going, friendly, and natural, which fully deserve their beautiful appearance.
Giraffes are social animals. They sometimes mix with zebras, ostriches, and antelopes. They have a sharp sense of smell and hearing, are alert and timid, usually walk leisurely, but run quickly (up to 70 km / h). They forage in the morning and dusk. In the wild, they mainly eat various leaves, especially the leaves of Mimosa. A giraffe can eat 63 kg of leaves and twigs every day.
According to British media reports on july21,2009, a family in Kenya has lived with eight giraffes as their family members for many years. When tourists arrive at this time, they can not only have close contact with giraffes, but also eat and live with giraffes. These rare giraffes are more than 16 feet tall and weigh more than 1 ton. They are expected to live to 30 years old.