Animal
Rothschild's giraffe
An African savanna animal whose newborn calf can stand almost two metres tall.
Langue du contenu
A newborn Rothschild's giraffe can be up to two metres tall and weigh around 100 kilograms. It is usually born as a single calf after a pregnancy of about 450 days. It drinks its mother's milk for roughly a year and does not reach sexual maturity until it is four or five years old. A large newborn still has a long period of development ahead.
These giraffes naturally inhabit savannas and open wooded country in Kenya and Uganda. Their main food is the leaves of trees and shrubs, especially acacias, supplemented by fruit, bark and grass. Their habitat combines tall trees with open space. A giraffe moves with a pacing gait, advancing the legs on one side of its body and then those on the other. Watch the sequence of steps if the animal walks across its enclosure. Rothschild's giraffes are included in the European EEP breeding programme, through which zoos cooperate.
Pour les enfants
A baby giraffe can already be taller than an adult person on the day it is born. It may stand two metres tall and weigh around 100 kilograms. Its mother carries it for about 450 days and then feeds it milk for roughly a year. Usually just one calf is born.
Rothschild's giraffes come from Kenya and Uganda in Africa. They live on savannas and in open country with trees. They mainly eat leaves, especially acacia leaves, as well as fruit, bark and grass. They walk in an unusual way: the legs on one side move forward, then the legs on the other side follow. This is called pacing. Try to spot it when the giraffe walks. European zoos cooperate in breeding these animals through the EEP programme.
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