Giraffe Tongue: 10 Interesting Facts About Giraffes You Might Not Know.

Giraffe tongue

Giraffe tongues can be super long, like up to 20 inches. This helps them eat well and survive in the wild.

The tongue has a dark layer that protects it. This is important because giraffes eat trees with thorns, and this layer keeps their tongues safe.
The giraffe’s tongue is not just long but can also grab and twist things. It’s like having an extra-handy tool for eating leaves.

The tongue Is strong and can move around easily. This helps giraffes reach leaves that other animals can’t.
Giraffes use their tongues for more than just eating; they also clean themselves, especially their fur and sensitive areas like their eyes and ears.
When giraffes chew, their tongues help with swallowing, making sure the food goes down the right way.

Giraffes make a lot of saliva when they eat. This, combined with the protective coating on their tongues, helps them eat thorny food without getting hurt.

The giraffe's tongue Is like a superhero tool, helping them eat in different places and keeping them healthy and happy.

10 interesting facts about giraffes, you might not know.

1. Giraffes can be two stories tall.

An adult giraffes head is 19 feet above the ground, but is not just due to their long necks.
Giraffes also have the longest feet of any land mammal.
A giraffe’s foot is about six feet tall, that’s taller than the average human.

2. Giraffes should be biologically impossible.

They have very high blood pressure because of their height.
A large mammal’s brain needs a blood pressure of 110 over 70.
So giraffes need a blood pressure of about 220 over 180 at the heart.
For humans, it would be fatal, but giraffe bodies are structured in a unique way.
For example, their legs contain very dense connective tissue.
This prevents swelling, normally associated with hypertension.
The veins in their necks prevent blood rushing to the head.
That’s how giraffes can bend down without fainting.

3. Giraffes sometimes eat skeletons.

Giraffes regularly consume bones, horns, and ivory.
This is known as osteophagia.
Taller giraffes are more likely to engage in it.
Bones are a source of calcium and phosphorus.
So giraffes use them as a mineral supplement.
Giraffes will rarely swallow much of the bones directly.
Instead, they chew and suck on them.
Their saliva dissolves the valuable nutrients.
Then they spit out the depleted material.

4. Giraffes can run at 30 miles per hour.

That’s an amazing speed for a nearly two ton animal.
But giraffes only run to get away from predators.
They don’t like to expend much energy.

5. Giraffes only have one natural predator.

The only animals that hunt giraffes are lions.
Lions band together to knock the giraff off of its long legs.
Then they attack it on the ground, where it’s vulnerable.
Giraffes defend themselves by kicking at the lion.
A giraffe can shatter a lion’s skull with a single kick.

6. Their necks can’t reach the ground.

Those long giraffe necks can’t reach the watering hole. So how do giraffes drink?
They bend their legs awkwardly to extend their reach.

7. Giraffes have horns.

Giraffes are born with unattached horns.
These small protrusions lie flat on their heads.
They’re detached from the skull to avoid injury during birth.
Later in life, the horns fuse with the skull.
Giraffes use them as weapons. Both male and female giraffes have horns.
But the tops of the horns on a male are almost always bald.
A female giraffe’s horns will be completely covered with fuzz.

8. Giraffes have bizarre mating rituals.

A male giraffe needs to know when the female is an estrus.
So he will gently head butt her in the bladder.
When she urinates, the male tastes the pee.

9. Giraffes almost never sleep.

Adult giraffes only ever take short naps.
They sleep for a few minutes at a time, standing up.
But baby giraffes need longer sleep.
A baby giraffe will rest its head on its rump to sleep.

10. Giraffe births are extreme.

Giraffe mothers give birth, standing up.
The baby drops head first onto the ground from a height of six feet.
But newborn giraffes can already stand up.
A baby giraffe weighs in at 130 pounds.
It starts running within a few hours of being born.