Giraffe
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MammalMegafaunaHerbivore
South African giraffe (Giraffa camelopardalis giraffa) in Kruger National Park.
Image: Charles J. Sharp, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
Overview
Giraffes (genus Giraffa) are the tallest living land animals, native to sub-Saharan Africa. Their disproportionately long necks and legs, distinctive coat patterns, ossicones (horn-like skull protuberances), and specialised cardiovascular system are the most visually striking features of any large African mammal. Recent genetic studies have proposed splitting what was traditionally treated as a single species into multiple species; classifications differ between sources.
Habitat & Range
Giraffes are found in savanna, open woodland, and grassland with scattered trees across a range of African regions. They are non-migratory in the strict sense but use seasonal patterns of movement to track food and water availability. Populations are increasingly fragmented across their range due to land-use change.
Diet
Giraffes are browsers, feeding largely on the leaves and shoots of trees and shrubs — particularly Acacia species. Their long necks, prehensile tongues and tough lip and palate tissues allow them to feed on thorny vegetation that many other herbivores cannot easily access. A wild giraffe spends a large part of each day feeding.
Behavior
Giraffes form loose social groups whose composition shifts over time ("fission-fusion" dynamics). Calves are sometimes left in nursery groups while adults feed at distance. Male giraffes engage in a behaviour called "necking", in which they swing their long necks against one another to establish dominance during the breeding season.
Human Interaction & Conservation
Conservation pressures include habitat loss and fragmentation, civil conflict in parts of the range, illegal hunting for meat and skins, and the displacement of populations by infrastructure and agriculture. Several giraffe populations and recognised subspecies (or species, depending on classification) face significant risk. Up-to-date status by population is best taken from the IUCN Red List and current conservation organisations.
Related conservation assessments
No single status applies to this profile. IUCN treats all of these animals as one species and assesses them together. This profile follows sources that split them into several species, so the single assessment below does not give each of those a status of its own.
Assessed as one species:Giraffe (Giraffa camelopardalis)
Vulnerable (VU)Matches source
FaunaHub's record matches IUCN's published Red List data for this species (global assessment, 2016), checked 2026-10-09.
Source and dates
- Assessed taxon
- Giraffa camelopardalis
- Assessed
- 2016, global assessment; this version published 2018
- IUCN taxon
- 9194
- Checked by FaunaHub
- 2026-10-09, against IUCN's Red List export published 2026-07-28
- FaunaHub record
- reviewed 2026-06-16 — its range, trend and threat notes are still pending source review
IUCN Red List categories are reassessed over time. FaunaHub is not a conservation authority; check the current assessment before relying on it.
Appearance & Recognition
Giraffes are impossible to confuse with any other living animal. The silhouette alone — an exceptionally long neck and long legs, a narrow deep-chested body, and a sloping back — is diagnostic at any reasonable distance. The head carries one or more pairs of bony ossicones covered in skin and a small dark tuft of hair; ossicones are typically present in both sexes but tend to be larger, thicker, and balder on top in adult males that engage in "necking" contests.
The coat is a tan-to-cream base broken by darker patches whose shape, outline, and spacing differ between species and subspecies. The reticulated giraffe shows large, clean-edged polygonal patches separated by sharp pale lines; the Masai giraffe carries irregular, jagged-edged blotches; the Rothschild's and southern giraffes show their own variants. Individual spot patterns are unique and are routinely used by researchers for identification. The tail is relatively short for the body, ending in a long dark tassel.
Similar Animals
The okapi (Okapia johnstoni) is the giraffe's closest living relative — a forest-dwelling species of Central Africa with a much shorter neck and a strikingly different coat pattern. No other living animal closely resembles a giraffe in body plan.
Compare With Related Animals
Side-by-side comparisons covering identification, taxonomy, habitat and behaviour.
Browse the Animal Compare Center
More photos of the giraffe
Rothschild's giraffes drinking — the characteristic splayed-leg posture lets giraffes reach water.
Image: Timothy Akolamazima, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
Lioness attempting to take down a giraffe — predator pressure is a real factor for giraffes despite their size.
Image: Buiobuione, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
Sourced facts
Each value below is traced to the specific reference that states it. Open a row's evidence to see the source, where to look in it, and how firmly it supports the value. Sources checked 2026-09-22.
| Fact | What the source states | Evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Body size | Bulls stand about 5.7 m to the horns — 3.3 m at the shoulder with a 2.4 m neck; cows are 0.7–1 m shorterStated for this profile's reference species, not the whole group. Sexes differ substantially and are given separately. | Matches source · Animal Diversity Web — how we knowAnimal Diversity Web — University of Michigan Museum of Zoology
|
| Body mass | 1,180–1,930 kgStated for this profile's reference species, not the whole group. | Matches source · Animal Diversity Web — how we knowAnimal Diversity Web — University of Michigan Museum of Zoology
|
| Lifespan | 10–15 years in the wild; 20–27 years in captivityStated for this profile's reference species, not the whole group. | Matches source · Animal Diversity Web — how we knowAnimal Diversity Web — University of Michigan Museum of Zoology
|
| Geographic range | Africa south of the Sahara, to eastern Transvaal, Natal and northern BotswanaStated for this profile's reference species, not the whole group. | Matches source · Animal Diversity Web — how we knowAnimal Diversity Web — University of Michigan Museum of Zoology
|
| Habitat | Savanna, grassland and open woodland on dry ground with acacia; also scrub forestStated for this profile's reference species, not the whole group. | Matches source · Animal Diversity Web — how we knowAnimal Diversity Web — University of Michigan Museum of Zoology
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| Diet | Folivorous — leaves, flowers, seed pods and fruit, with acacia leaves the stapleStated for this profile's reference species, not the whole group. | Matches source · Animal Diversity Web — how we knowAnimal Diversity Web — University of Michigan Museum of Zoology
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| Activity pattern | Diurnal; feeds and drinks in the morning and evening and rests standing at nightStated for this profile's reference species, not the whole group. | Matches source · Animal Diversity Web — how we knowAnimal Diversity Web — University of Michigan Museum of Zoology
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| Social structure | Loose, unstable herds of 10–20, occasionally up to 70; individuals join and leave freelyStated for this profile's reference species, not the whole group. | Matches source · Animal Diversity Web — how we knowAnimal Diversity Web — University of Michigan Museum of Zoology
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References for the facts above
- UniversityAnimal Diversity Web — University of Michigan Museum of ZoologySupports: Body size, mass, lifespan, geographic range, habitat, diet, activity pattern and social structure, for Giraffa camelopardalis. Retrieved 2026-09-22.Limitations: A peer-edited account written largely by students under faculty review. Figures are compiled from the literature rather than from a single study, and some are regional.