Tell Us About the World’s Tallest Animal (Giraffe)

There are animals of different sizes around us. We can spot various insects and animals around our home. We can see the hard-working ants carrying sugar granules from our kitchen, cats chasing mice in our backyards, dogs running in packs, cows at dairy farms, and sometimes even on the street. I live in Rajasthan; here we also get to see camels on the street sometimes.

Camels and elephants seem huge. If you stand next to them, you feel tiny, but they are not the tallest. The giraffe is the tallest land animal on earth. The average height of a giraffe is around 16 feet or 5 metres. It is so tall that most humans will seem shorter than its legs, which are approximately 6 feet high. Some giraffes can be as tall as 19 feet. The African Bush Elephant comes next to a giraffe in terms of height. These gigantic animals can be as tall as 13 feet.

A giraffe’s height gives it some advantages. It can help the animal spot prey from afar, and its legs help it run at speeds up to 35 miles (56 km) per hour. A giraffe will kick its attacker with its legs. Its neck, which is around 7 feet long, helps a giraffe eat leaves off tall trees. Giraffes are herbivorous, and with the help of the neck, they can easily reach leaves atop trees and munch on them using their 21-inch tongue. A giraffe will do this a lot as it is eating for a major part of the day. These animals sleep for only two hours. They also use their long necks to hit each other in a fight, an action that is called ‘necking’. Giraffes wrestle by winding their necks around the opponent.

People once thought that a giraffe is a cross between a leopard and a camel. This explains their scientific name, Giraffa Camelopardalis. These animals, given their height, are quite heavy. Their weight ranges from 790 to 1260 kg. Wild giraffes usually have a lifespan of up to 40 years. A giraffe’s natural habitat is the Sub-Saharan African region.

Did you know that giraffes are social animals? They like company and move around in groups of 15, where the leader is a male giraffe. Talk about towering height, even their group is called a tower! Giraffes are intelligent and quiet.

Frequently Asked Questions

1. Is a giraffe faster than an elephant?

A giraffe is faster than an elephant. It is taller, while an elephant is heavier. While a giraffe can run at speeds of 30-35 mph, an elephant runs at 9-25 mph.  

2. Which is the second-tallest animal?

The African Bush Elephant stands next to the giraffe in terms of height. These elephants are around 10.5 feet to 13 feet tall.

3. Which creature is the slowest in the world?

The sloth is the slowest animal on our planet. Even at its fastest, it only moves at 0.003 mph.

4. What do you call a female giraffe?

A female giraffe is called a cow.