giraffe

The giraffe is a specialized offshoot of the deer family. The giraffe family is now restricted to two species: the okapi and the giraffe itself. The irregular coloration of the giraffe varies greatly, both geographically and between individuals. Some animals are almost white or black, or have few markings.

Rothschild's giraffe, in Kenya. Both male and female giraffes have two to four permanent skin-covered horns.

A Rothchild's giraffe and baby in Nakuru National Park, Kenya. The giraffe is the biggest ruminant and the tallest mammal. A mother giraffe often gives birth while standing so that the newborn's first experience outside the womb is a 1.8 m/6 ft drop.

World's tallest mammal. It stands over 5.5 m/18 ft tall, the neck accounting for nearly half this amount. The giraffe has two to four small, skin-covered, hornlike structures on its head and a long, tufted tail. The fur has a mottled appearance and is reddish brown and cream. Giraffes are found only in Africa, south of the Sahara Desert. They eat leaves and vegetation that is out of reach of smaller mammals, and are ruminants; that is, they chew the cud. (Species Giraffa camelopardalis, family Giraffidae.)

Both members of the Giraffidae, the giraffe and the okapi, are able to use their extremely long tongues for cleaning their eyes and ears.