Description: Giraffe - Stretch
Interior Carving: Basketball
Measurement: 2in
Manufacturer: Harmony Ball
Material: Crushed Marble

Giraffe Facts:

• Scientific name is “camelopardalis”, meaning “camel leopard” in Latin.
• Native to Africa.
• Nine subspecies, based on coat pattern. Like human fingerprints, every coat is unique.
• Tallest of all land-living animals. Males (bulls) can be 16-18’ tall and weigh between 1700 and 4200 lbs. Females (cows) are 1-2’ shorter and weigh several hundred pounds less.
• Excellent eyesight.
• Thought to be mute. Although quiet, they grunt, snort and bleat. Recent research has shown evidence that they communicate at infrasound level.
• Can reach speeds up to 35mph. Every step is 15’ long. You would have to run to keep up with one.
• Can eat 140 lbs. of food daily. Prefers new shoots and leaves, mainly from the acacia tree. Can live on any vegetable food. Can drink 12 gallons in one sitting.
• Tongue is 18 inches long.
• One of the shortest sleep requirements of any mammal, averaging 1.9 hours per day. Rarely lay down. Sleep and give birth standing up.
• Gestation lasts 14-15 months, after which single calf is born. Mother gives birth standing up and embryonic sack usually bursts when baby falls to ground. Newborns 6’ tall. Within a few hours, calves can run around, but for first two weeks, they spend most of their time lying down, guarded by mother. One of the few animals born with horns.
• Non-territorial and social, living in loose open herds. Females form groups of a dozen members, occasionally including a few younger males. Males tend to live in "bachelor" herds, with older males often leading solitary lives.
• Life span is 20-25 years in the wild and 28 years in captivity.