Giraffe Wildlife Giraffa camelopardalis - stock photo

The giraffe Giraffa camelopardalis is an African even-toed ungulate mammal, the tallest living terrestrial animal and the largest ruminant. Its name refers to its camel-like face and patches of color on a light background. The adult giraffe is noted for its extremely long neck and legs, standing 16–20 ft tall with an average weight of 3,500 lbs for males and 1,800 lbs for females. Located at both sides of the head, the giraffe's large, bulging eyes give it good all-round vision from its great height. Giraffes see in color and their senses of hearing and smell are also sharp. The animal can close its muscular nostrils to protect against sandstorms and ants. The giraffe's prehensile tongue is about 20 inches long. It is purplish-black in color, to protect against sunburn, and is useful for grasping foliage as well as for grooming and cleaning the animal's nose. The upper lip of the giraffe is also prehensile and useful when foraging. The lips, tongue and inside of the mouth are covered in papillae to protect against thorns. Both sexes have horns, but the females' are covered with hair.