The History of World Giraffe Day:

World Giraffe Day is an exciting annual event initiated by GCF to celebrate the longest-necked animal on the longest day or night (depending on which hemisphere you live!) of the year – 21 June – every year!

 

Not only is it a worldwide celebration of these amazing and much-loved animals, but an annual event to raise support, create awareness and shed light on the challenges giraffe face in the wild. By supporting World Giraffe Day (WGD), you directly help save giraffe in Africa. With only 100,000 giraffe remaining in the wild, the time is right to act NOW!

 

Zoos, schools, NGOs, governments, institutions, companies and conservation organizations around the world are hosting events on or around 21 June every year to raise awareness and support for giraffe in the wild.

 

For the most part, these drops in population are due to the increase of human settlements and the loss of habitat that goes along with it.

 

Some giraffe populations have been harder hit than others and Masai giraffe seem to be taking the brunt of it. As one of the most populous giraffe populations in Africa, there are only 32,000 Masai giraffe remaining in southern Kenya and Tanzania. Their number has dropped by more than half in the last 30 years.

 

How to Celebrate World Giraffe Day

-The GCF website has plenty of information for you if you wish to donate to the effort of saving the world?s giraffe population, and you should certainly take a look if you are fond of the long-necked creatures.

-Even small donations count towards helping, and just a little money can go towards helping to ensure the future safety of the Masai giraffe.

-Many zoos across your country will be taking part in fundraising and observance of this day – so if you want to get involved, you could pop along and play your part.

-Be sure to share information about giraffe conservation on your social networking accounts, and get the conversation started about keeping these beautiful animals a part of our wildlife.

 

 

About Giraffes:

Background:

The giraffe (Giraffa) is a genus of African even-toed ungulate mammals, the tallest living terrestrial animals and the largest ruminants. The genus currently consists of one species, Giraffa camelopardalis, the type species. Seven other species are extinct, prehistoric species known from fossils. Taxonomic classifications of one to eight extant giraffe species have been described, based upon research into the mitochondrial and nuclear DNA, as well as morphological measurements of Giraffa, but the IUCN currently recognizes only one species with nine subspecies.

 

The giraffe's chief distinguishing characteristics are its extremely long neck and legs, its horn-like ossicones, and its distinctive coat patterns. It is classified under the family Giraffidae, along with its closest extant relative, the okapi. Its scattered range extends from Chad in the north to South Africa in the south, and from Niger in the west to Somalia in the east. Giraffes usually inhabit savannas and woodlands. Their food source is leaves, fruits and flowers of woody plants, primarily acacia species, which they browse at heights most other herbivores cannot reach. They may be preyed on by lions, leopards, spotted hyenas and African wild dogs. Giraffes live in herds of related females and their offspring, or bachelor herds of unrelated adult males, but are gregarious and may gather in large aggregations. Males establish social hierarchies through "necking", which are combat bouts where the neck is used as a weapon. Dominant males gain mating access to females, which bear the sole responsibility for raising the young.

 

Taxonomy:

Living giraffes were originally classified as one species by Carl Linnaeus in 1758. He gave it the binomial name Cervus camelopardalis. Morten Thrane Brünnich classified the genus Giraffa in 1772. The species name camelopardalis is from Latin.

 

IUCN Status:

Giraffe are listed as Vulnerable to extinction on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Giraffe numbers in Africa have plummeted by a staggering 40% over the last 30 years. We estimate today that there are fewer than 100,000 giraffe remaining in all of Africa.

 

Major Threats:

Four major threats to Giraffes can be identified, although the severity and presence of these threats varies by region and population:

-habitat loss (through deforestation, land use conversion, expansion of agricultural activities and human population growth)

-civil unrest (ethnic violence, rebel militias, paramilitary and military operations),

-illegal hunting (poaching), and

-ecological changes (mining activity, habitat conversion to agriculture, climate-induced processes)

 

A free-for-all that must end

The following steps would go a long way:

-Private landowners should be encouraged to form conservancies to reduce the effects of habitat fragmentation and reduce habitat degradation from overstocking.

-Game ranches should also be required to undertake a habitat analysis before they can own a giraffe. Few game ranches do this. The habitat assessment should provide recommendations about the viability of the ranch and the introduction of the species. Many giraffe have died because they could not adapt to the environment. Proper regulations would limit these deaths and protect the habitat.

-Robust assessments should be made of the impact on vegetation and other ecosystem processes when giraffe are introduced into areas considered extralimital. And there should be research into appropriate habitats.

-DNA and genetic material should be collected for assessing genetic diversity, describing potential inbreeding and informing translocation management frameworks.

-Appropriate giraffe management and legislation for the wildlife sector should be supported and regulations put in place to prevent the importation and exportation of giraffe types, and

-A large-scale stud book, which documents the demographic history of each individual giraffe, could be established to prevent inbreeding.

 

These interventions could be tied together by the drafting and adoption of a biodiversity management plan for giraffes. Supporting the development of appropriate giraffe management and legislation for the wildlife sector will help to stabilize numbers.

 

Let's save our species. :) :)

 

 

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