Fun Kordofan Giraffe Facts For Kids

There is a subspecies of giraffes found in Northern Cameroon, southern Chad, Central African Republic, and also Western Sudan. The Kordofan Giraffe, scientific name - Giraffa camelopardalis antiquorum, is often mistaken with the range of the other subspecies of the giraffe species named West African Giraffe. The population in the northern Cameroon area has been assigned to the West African Giraffe, which looks a lot like the G c antiquorum. The Kordofan giraffe classification has also failed as many European zoos have been found keeping West African Giraffe in their enclosures by the former species' name. There are a total of nine subspecies of giraffe living across Africa. Although this information is researched now, as scientists believe the fact is not true, the population of the subspecies of the genus Giraffa, known by Giraffa camelopardalis antiquorum, is decreasing alarmingly.

There are many zoos all around the world, where many populations of these species of giraffes can be spotted. Apart from the Kordofan giraffe, there are the Giraffe and Masai Giraffe that are found in this range of wildlife and also in some zoos. Read some interesting facts about these massive mammals here on the Kidadl website.

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What type of animal is a Kordofan Giraffe?

The Kordofan Giraffe is a species of giraffe of the Animal Kingdom.

What class of animal does a Kordofan Giraffe belong to?

This population of the giraffe species is a part of the Mammalia class.

How many Kordofan Giraffes are there in the world?

As the Kordofan Giraffe population is decreasing rapidly, there are only 2000 individuals of the animal estimated living in the wild. That is way too little, and the populations of these animals have been decreasing for the last 30 years.

The last remaining populations of the subspecies are found in Garamba National Park in Congo and Zakouma National Park in south-eastern Chad. A number of 934 giraffes were recorded in an aerial survey of the latter park in 2014. The African government has taken the help of GCF for the conservation of these giraffes.

Where does a Kordofan Giraffe live?

Unlike the giraffes found in West Africa, the Kordofan Giraffe is only found in northern Cameroon, southern Chad, the Central African Republic, and western Sudan. The population found in Cameroon has also been mistaken for the West African giraffe. Otherwise, most West African Giraffe is found in the northern side of Africa.

What is a Kordofan Giraffe's habitat?

The Kordofan Giraffe needs large areas of bush and savannah areas and lives in the semi-desert areas. They drink water only once every four to five days and get the rest of the liquid from their food. They need hightop trees for them to feed.

Who do Kordofan Giraffes live with?

Giraffes are very sociable animals. They are usually found in small herds of six to eight and sometimes more when considering calves and cows. They usually stay together to find food and roam around.

How long does a Kordofan Giraffe live?

The life expectancy of the Kordofan Giraffe is known to be around 33 years.

How do they reproduce?

The usual gestation period for a female in the wild is 450-488 days. Only one calf is born after this period with a usual height of six feet. Giraffes give birth standing up and usually manage the height accordingly so that while giving birth, the head and legs of the calf are safe.

What is their conservation status?

The Kordofan giraffe conservation status is kept at Critically Endangered by the IUCN red list. This giraffe has been the victim of many poaching activities and gets killed between firings. There are also instances of humans killing them for the meat and for the sheer fun of hunting. Even big cats like cheetahs and lions prey on these giraffes.

What do Kordofan Giraffes look like?

Kordofan Giraffes are long-necked animals and possess only seven cervical vertebrae like humans. They have two knobs on their head and sometimes more bumps on the skull, but very rarely. The males are darker in color and sometimes even black. The color otherwise varies from brown to a rich chestnut. The males have thick horns and are bald on top whereas the females have thin and tufted horns. The giraffes from Africa have a light-colored coat with yellowish-brown to blackish-brown spots. The Kordofan giraffe pattern on the body includes pale, white, and irregular spots, more on their inner legs. The animal found in the wild has their horns five inches long. They do not have any marking on their lower legs.

The giraffes are born with horns, unlike any other mammals in the world. They usually feed themselves by sticking their 50 cm-long tongues to pluck leaves from the highest treetops. This feeding technique ensures there is no competition for them in terms of food. The habitat of these animals needs to have high trees.

How cute are they?

Giraffes have cute faces and also are very friendly.

How do they communicate?

The giraffes communicate with the help of sounds that are not audible to human ears. The sounds are in the low-frequency infrasonic range. Only the calls of the mother to their calves can be heard by humans.

How big is a Kordofan Giraffe?

The Kordofan giraffe size ranges from 150-185 in (3.8-4.7 m). When compared with the other subspecies of giraffes, the Kordofan giraffe is relatively small.

How fast can a Kordofan Giraffe run?

Although these species move relatively slower than other animals, when in trouble they are known to reach speeds of 34 mph.

How much does a Kordofan Giraffe weigh?

The average weight of a Kordofan giraffe ranges from 1322-4188 lb (600-1900 kg), with females being the lightest.

What are their male and female names of the species?

The male and female sexes of the animal are not given different names.

What would you call a baby Kordofan Giraffe?

A baby Kordofan Giraffe is called a calf.

What do they eat?

Giraffes love to browse around and feed mostly on the new shoots of trees and shrubs. Alternatively, they are known to feed on leaves, grasses, and seeds of other plants. Due to their long neck, it is easier to reach branches of tall trees that make up the Kordofan giraffe diet.

Are they dangerous?

The Kordofan giraffes are not at all dangerous.

Would they make a good pet?

The giraffes thrive in the wildlife and are not considered pets by anyone.

Did you know...

In Cameroon, the number of Kordofan giraffes is estimated to be less than 660 currently. These are found in Waza National Park, Bouba Ndjida National Park, and Benoue National Park.

The name of the giraffe comes from a former province in Sudan called Kordofan. The Kordofan giraffe population in those areas has declined rapidly in recent times. Kordofan giraffe conservation practices have been going on and recovery is expected for some time, but for now, this subspecies is going towards extinction very fast.

Size of the Kordofan Giraffe

Kordofan giraffes are relatively small at just 4.7 m in maximum height. Usually, giraffes grow up to 6 m long.

Why are Kordofan Giraffes endangered?

The reason for the endangerment of this species is mainly poaching and hunting by humans. Also, the loss of habitat is an issue, but the poaching practices have declined the population of this species rapidly. This species found in Africa is in urgent need of conservation.

Here at Kidadl, we have carefully created lots of interesting family-friendly animal facts for everyone to discover! Learn more about some other mammals including the reticulated giraffe, or plains zebra.

You can even occupy yourself at home by drawing one on our Kordofan giraffe coloring pages.