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53-606: The property was purchased by new owners in 2012 and the former giraffe barn has been developed into a hotel and opened in October 2019 following an extensive renovation of the existing building. The Catskill Game Farm was opened in 1933 by Roland Lindemann and it was sold to his daughter Kathie Schulz in 1989. In August 2006, the Catskill Game Farm announced that it would be closing on October 9 that year, ending over 70 years of operation citing declining business. Business peaked in

106-428: A 2024 study found that, while males have thicker necks, females actually have proportionally longer ones, which is likely because of their greater need to find more food to sustain themselves and their dependent young. It has also been proposed that the neck serves to give the animal greater vigilance. Acacieae See text The Mimosoideae are a traditional subfamily of trees, herbs, lianas, and shrubs in

159-416: A difficult time giving birth to young with the same neck proportions as adults. The giraffe's head and neck are held up by large muscles and a nuchal ligament , which are anchored by long thoracic vertebrae spines, giving them a hump. The giraffe's neck vertebrae have ball and socket joints . The point of articulation between the cervical and thoracic vertebrae of giraffes is shifted to lie between

212-466: A disproportionate lengthening of the cervical vertebrae , not from the addition of more vertebrae. Each cervical vertebra is over 28 cm (11 in) long. They comprise 52–54 per cent of the length of the giraffe's vertebral column , compared with the 27–33 percent typical of similar large ungulates, including the giraffe's closest living relative, the okapi . This elongation largely takes place after birth, perhaps because giraffe mothers would have

265-492: A dry savannah emerged across eastern and northern Africa and western India. Some researchers have hypothesised that this new habitat, coupled with a different diet, including acacia species, may have exposed giraffe ancestors to toxins that caused higher mutation rates and a higher rate of evolution. The coat patterns of modern giraffes may also have coincided with these habitat changes. Asian giraffes are hypothesised to have had more okapi-like colourations. The giraffe genome

318-466: A food shortage. Another theory, the sexual selection hypothesis, proposes that long necks evolved as a secondary sexual characteristic , giving males an advantage in "necking" contests (see below) to establish dominance and obtain access to sexually receptive females. In support of this theory, some studies have stated that necks are longer and heavier for males than females of the same age, and that males do not employ other forms of combat. However,

371-464: A giraffe's skull. However, as males age, their skulls become heavier and more club-like, helping them become more dominant in combat. The occipital condyles at the bottom of the skull allow the animal to tip its head over 90 degrees and grab food on the branches directly above them with the tongue. With eyes located on the sides of the head, the giraffe has a broad visual field from its great height. Compared to other ungulates , giraffe vision

424-588: A medium-sized, lightly built body. Giraffokeryx appeared 15–12 mya on the Indian subcontinent and resembled an okapi or a small giraffe, and had a longer neck and similar ossicones . Giraffokeryx may have shared a clade with more massively built giraffids like Sivatherium and Bramatherium . Giraffids like Palaeotragus , Shansitherium and Samotherium appeared 14 mya and lived throughout Africa and Eurasia. These animals had broader skulls with reduced frontal cavities. Paleotragus resembled

477-402: A stipe), with many ovules or ovules arranged in two rows. The ovary is attached by a filiform style to a small, capitate stigma. The legume's endocarp is attached to the exocarp, but is otherwise very variable, and may be dehiscent or indehiscent. Seeds are usually elliptic to oblong and flattened to varying degrees. Seeds have a hard black-brown testa (i.e. seed coat) with a pleurogram, visible as

530-722: Is a wide-ranging, polyphyletic tribe of legumes in the Mimosoideae that is native to the tropics , subtropics, and warm-temperate regions. It includes five or six genera and some 1,450 species. In Bentham 's 1842 circumscription of the subfamily Mimosoideae, Acacieae was one of its three constituent tribes, the others being Ingeae Benth. & Hook.f. and Mimoseae Bornn. His Acacieae tribe of 1842 included many genera that were subsequently assigned to tribe Ingeae Benth. In 1875, however, Bentham narrowed his definition of Acacieae so as to include only Acacia Mill. The only morphological character of Acacieae used to distinguish it from

583-598: Is around 2.9 billion base pairs in length, compared to the 3.3 billion base pairs of the okapi. Of the proteins in giraffe and okapi genes, 19.4% are identical. The divergence of giraffe and okapi lineages dates to around 11.5 mya. A small group of regulatory genes in the giraffe appears responsible for the animal's height and associated circulatory adaptations. The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) currently recognises only one species of giraffe with nine subspecies. Carl Linnaeus originally classified living giraffes as one species in 1758. He gave it

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636-404: Is correlated with calf survival. The skin under the blotches may regulate the animal's body temperature, being sites for complex blood vessel systems and large sweat glands . Spotless or solid-color giraffes are very rare, but have been observed. The fur may give the animal chemical defense, as its parasite repellents give it a characteristic scent. At least 11 main aromatic chemicals are in

689-469: Is equivocal. It was included in the Acacieae by Vassal (1981) and Maslin et al. (2003), but Lewis & Rico Arce placed it in tribe Ingeae following Polhill (1994) and Luckow et al. (2003). In the latter case, tribe Acacieae may conform to genus Acacia s.l. , pending the latter's relationship to other mimosoid genera. Faidherbia is troublesome as its stamens are shortly united at their base and its pollen

742-482: Is flexible and hairy to protect against sharp prickles. The upper jaw has a hard palate instead of front teeth. The molars and premolars are wide with low crowns on the surface. The giraffe has an extremely elongated neck, which can be up to 2.4 m (7 ft 10 in) in length. Along the neck is a mane made of short, erect hairs. The neck typically rests at an angle of 50–60 degrees, though juveniles are closer to 70 degrees. The long neck results from

795-477: Is leaves, fruits, and flowers of woody plants, primarily acacia species, which they browse at heights most other ground-based herbivores cannot reach. Lions , leopards , spotted hyenas , and African wild dogs may prey upon giraffes. 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 groups. Males establish social hierarchies through "necking", combat bouts where

848-439: Is more binocular and the eyes are larger with a greater retinal surface area. Giraffes may see in colour, and their senses of hearing and smell are sharp. The ears are movable. The nostrils are slit-shaped, possibly to withstand blowing sand. The giraffe's tongue is about 45 cm (18 in) long. It is black, perhaps to protect against sunburn, and can grasp foliage and delicately pick off leaves. The upper lip

901-671: Is one of only two living genera of the family Giraffidae in the order Artiodactyla , the other being the okapi . They are ruminants of the clade Pecora , along with Antilocapridae ( pronghorns ), Cervidae (deer), Bovidae (cattle, antelope, goats and sheep) and Moschidae (musk deer). A 2019 genome study (cladogram below) finds that Giraffidae are a sister taxon to Antilocapridae, with an estimated split of over 20 million years ago. Tragulidae [REDACTED] Antilocapridae [REDACTED] Giraffidae [REDACTED] Cervidae [REDACTED] Bovidae [REDACTED] Moschidae [REDACTED] The family Giraffidae

954-511: Is relatively short. The skin is mostly gray or tan, and can reach a thickness of 20 mm (0.79 in). The 80–100 cm (31–39 in) long tail ends in a long, dark tuft of hair and is used as a defense against insects. The coat has dark blotches or patches, which can be orange, chestnut , brown, or nearly black, surrounded by light hair, usually white or cream coloured. Male giraffes become darker as they grow old. The coat pattern has been claimed to serve as camouflage in

1007-458: Is similar to some taxa in the Ingeae. They are trees, shrubs or lianas, which may be armed or unarmed. Where they have spines, these are modified stipules. In some, prickles arise from the stem's cortex and epidermis. The leaves are bipinnate or are modified to vertically oriented phyllodes. A few have cladodes rather than leaves. Extrafloral nectaries may be present on the petiole and rachis, and

1060-450: Is subsumed into G. camelopardalis camelopardalis . G. camelopardalis antiquorum (Kordofan giraffe) G. c. camelopardalis (Nubian giraffe) G. c. peralta (West African giraffe) (no subspecies) G. tippelskirchi tippelskirchi (Masai giraffe sensu stricto ) G. t. thornicrofti (Luangwa or Thornicroft's giraffe) G. giraffa angolensis (Angolan giraffe) G. g. giraffa (South African giraffe) The following table compares

1113-473: Is the tallest living terrestrial animal and the largest ruminant on Earth . Traditionally, giraffes have been thought of as one species , Giraffa camelopardalis , with nine subspecies . Most recently, researchers proposed dividing them into four extant species due to new research into their mitochondrial and nuclear DNA , and individual species can be distinguished by their fur coat patterns. Seven other extinct species of Giraffa are known from

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1166-863: The Mimosoid clade within subfamily Caesalpinioideae . The group includes about 40 genera and 2,500 species. Some classification systems, for example the Cronquist system, treat the Fabaceae in a narrow sense, raising the Mimisoideae to the rank of family as Mimosaceae. The Angiosperm Phylogeny Group treats Fabaceae in the broad sense. The Mimosoideae were historically subdivided into four tribes (Acacieae, Ingeae, Mimoseae, and Mimozygantheae). However, modern molecular phylogenetics has shown that these groupings were artificial. Several informal subgroups have been proposed, but not yet described formally as tribes. Additionally,

1219-531: The Pleistocene . Some biologists suggest the modern giraffes descended from G. jumae ; others find G. gracilis a more likely candidate. G. jumae was larger and more robust, while G. gracilis was smaller and more slender. The changes from extensive forests to more open habitats , which began 8 mya, are believed to be the main driver for the evolution of giraffes. During this time, tropical plants disappeared and were replaced by arid C4 plants , and

1272-471: The binomial name Cervus camelopardalis . Mathurin Jacques Brisson coined the generic name Giraffa in 1762. During the 1900s, various taxonomies with two or three species were proposed. A 2007 study on the genetics of giraffes using mitochondrial DNA suggested at least six lineages could be recognised as species. A 2011 study using detailed analyses of the morphology of giraffes, and application of

1325-461: The fossil record. The giraffe's distinguishing characteristics are its extremely long neck and legs, horn-like ossicones , and spotted 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 savannahs and woodlands . Their food source

1378-454: The phylogenetic species concept , described eight species of living giraffes. A 2016 study also concluded that living giraffes consist of multiple species. The researchers suggested the existence of four species, which have not exchanged genetic information between each other for 1 to 2 million years. A 2020 study showed that depending on the method chosen, different taxonomic hypotheses recognizing from two to six species can be considered for

1431-542: The 1590s. The modern English form developed around 1600 from the French girafe . "Camelopard" / k ə ˈ m ɛ l ə ˌ p ɑːr d / is an archaic English name for the giraffe; it derives from the Ancient Greek καμηλοπάρδαλις ( kamēlopárdalis ), from κάμηλος ( kámēlos ), " camel ", and πάρδαλις ( párdalis ), " leopard ", referring to its camel-like shape and leopard-like colouration. The giraffe

1484-497: The 1960s. An auction was held in October 2006 to sell off equipment and animals. The auction was held over two days and it attracted over 1,000 potential bidders from US, Canada and Mexico. At first, it held only deer , donkeys , and sheep . In 1958, the United States Department of Agriculture recognized Catskill Game Farm as a zoo, and it became the first privately owned venture to achieve such status. The collection

1537-577: The Ingeae is the presence of free stamens (as in tribe Mimoseae). In the Ingeae they are fused in the form of a tube, whereas in the Acacieae only a few species have the stamens fused at the base. Several characters of the foliage, seeds, seed pods, pollen, and stipules are shared by the two tribes. The flower morphology of Acacia s.l. has characteristics in common with the genera Leucaena , Piptadenia , and Mimosa (tribe Mimoseae) and Enterolobium and Lysiloma (tribe Ingeae). The tribal position of monotypic genus Faidherbia A. Chevalier

1590-510: The Internet in 2017. Ben and Cathy Ballone purchased the former Catskill Game Farm property in 2012. They established The Old Game Farm. They have been working to reopen the site as a family-oriented establishment once again, with the addition of a B&B , campground, and RV resort with animals. The new owners have developed the former giraffe barn into a hotel. It was the home of several generations and families of giraffes, including April which

1643-432: The canopy. However, scientists disagree about just how much time giraffes spend feeding at levels beyond the reach of other browsers, and a 2010 study found that adult giraffes with longer necks actually suffered higher mortality rates under drought conditions than their shorter-necked counterparts. This study suggests that maintaining a longer neck requires more nutrients, which puts longer-necked giraffes at risk during

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1696-403: The corolla lobes), and their filaments are sometimes connate at their base (forming a short stemonozone). Male flowers of some Neotropical species have a reduced staminal tube (cf. A. albicorticata , A. hindsii , A. farnesiana , and S. picachensis ). Flowers are usually yellow or cream-coloured, but may be white, red, or purple. The ovary is sessile or stipitate (i.e. supported by

1749-496: The different hypotheses for giraffe species. The description column shows the traditional nine subspecies in the one-species hypothesis. Also known as Baringo giraffe or Ugandan giraffe Also known as Niger giraffe or Nigerian giraffe Also known as Somali giraffe Also known as Namibian giraffe Also known as Cape giraffe Also known as Kilimanjaro giraffe Also known as Luangwa giraffe or Rhodesian giraffe The first extinct species to be described

1802-472: The elongation of the neck, as it enabled giraffes to reach food that competitors could not. This advantage is real, as giraffes can and do feed up to 4.5 m (15 ft) high, while even quite large competitors, such as kudu, can feed up to only about 2 m (6 ft 7 in) high. There is also research suggesting that browsing competition is intense at lower levels, and giraffes feed more efficiently (gaining more leaf biomass with each mouthful) high in

1855-420: The existence of four distinct species and seven subspecies. A 2024 study found a higher amount of ancient gene flow than expected between populations. The cladogram below shows the phylogenetic relationship between the four proposed species and seven subspecies based on a 2021 genome analysis. The eight lineages correspond to eight traditional subspecies in the one-species hypothesis. The Rothschild giraffe

1908-538: The first and second thoracic vertebrae (T1 and T2), unlike in most other ruminants, where the articulation is between the seventh cervical vertebra (C7) and T1. This allows C7 to contribute directly to increased neck length and has given rise to the suggestion that T1 is actually C8, and that giraffes have added an extra cervical vertebra. However, this proposition is not generally accepted, as T1 has other morphological features, such as an articulating rib , deemed diagnostic of thoracic vertebrae, and because exceptions to

1961-425: The fur, although indole and 3-methylindole are responsible for most of the smell. Because males have a stronger odour than females, it may also have a sexual function . Both sexes have prominent horn-like structures called ossicones , which can reach 13.5 cm (5.3 in). They are formed from ossified cartilage , covered in skin, and fused to the skull at the parietal bones . Being vascularised ,

2014-833: The genus Acacia was recently segregated into five genera ( Acacia sensu stricto , Acaciella , Mariosousa , Senegalia , and Vachellia ). The following fossil wood morphogenera have been described: Modern molecular phylogenetics suggests the following relationships: Diptychandra Moldenhawera Pachyelasma Erythrophleum Chidlowia Adenanthera Group Pentaclethra Newtonia Group Plathymenia Entada Group Cylicodiscus Prosopis Group Mimozyganthus Group Neptunia Leucaena Group Dichrostachys Group Vachellia Parkia Group Piptadenia Group Senegalia Parasenegalia Mariosousa Abarema Group Ingeae Grade Pithecellobium Group Paraserianthes Austroacacia Acacieae ( Dumort. , 1829 )

2067-482: The genus Giraffa . That study also found that multi-species coalescent methods can lead to taxonomic over-splitting, as those methods delimit geographic structures rather than species. The three-species hypothesis, which recognises G . camelopardalis , G . giraffa , and G . tippelskirchi , is highly supported by phylogenetic analyses and also corroborated by most population genetic and multi-species coalescent analyses. A 2021 whole genome sequencing study suggests

2120-486: The light and shade patterns of savannah woodlands. When standing among trees and bushes, they are hard to see at even a few metres distance. However, adult giraffes move about to gain the best view of an approaching predator, relying on their size and ability to defend themselves rather than on camouflage, which may be more important for calves. Each giraffe has a unique coat pattern. Calves inherit some coat pattern traits from their mothers, and variation in some spot traits

2173-470: The mammalian limit of seven cervical vertebrae are generally characterised by increased neurological anomalies and maladies. There are several hypotheses regarding the evolutionary origin and maintenance of elongation in giraffe necks. Charles Darwin originally suggested the "competing browsers hypothesis", which has been challenged only recently. It suggests that competitive pressure from smaller browsers, like kudu , steenbok and impala , encouraged

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2226-680: The neck is used as a weapon. Dominant males gain mating access to females, which bear sole responsibility for rearing the young. The giraffe has intrigued various ancient and modern cultures for its peculiar appearance and has often been featured in paintings, books, and cartoons. It is classified by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) as vulnerable to extinction. It has been extirpated from many parts of its former range. Giraffes are still found in many national parks and game reserves , but estimates as of 2016 indicate there are approximately 97,500 members of Giraffa in

2279-452: The okapi and may have been its ancestor. Others find that the okapi lineage diverged earlier, before Giraffokeryx . Samotherium was a particularly important transitional fossil in the giraffe lineage, as the length and structure of its cervical vertebrae were between those of a modern giraffe and an okapi, and its neck posture was likely similar to the former's. Bohlinia , which first appeared in southeastern Europe and lived 9–7 mya,

2332-484: The ossicones may have a role in thermoregulation , and are used in combat between males. Appearance is a reliable guide to the sex or age of a giraffe: the ossicones of females and young are thin and display tufts of hair on top, whereas those of adult males tend to be bald and knobbed on top. A lump, which is more prominent in males, emerges in the middle of the skull. Males develop calcium deposits that form bumps on their skulls as they age. Multiple sinuses lighten

2385-473: The pea family ( Fabaceae ) that mostly grow in tropical and subtropical climates. They are typically characterized by having radially symmetric flowers, with petals that are twice divided (valvate) in bud and with numerous showy, prominent stamens. Recent work on phylogenetic relationships has found that the Mimosoideae form a clade nested with subfamily Caesalpinioideae and the most recent classification by The Legume Phylogeny Working Group refer to them as

2438-642: The pinnule tips may carry protein-lipid Beltian bodies . The leaflets are usually opposite, and are carried on shortly stalks or are sessile. The heartwood is typically red and hard, and the sap of various species hardens into gum. The inflorescences are dense pedunculate heads or spikes borne in axillary clusters, or are aggregated in terminal panicles. The tetra- or pentamerous flowers are uniformly bisexual, or male and bisexual. Sepals are connate (i.e. fused) and valvate (i.e. not overlapping). The reduced petals are valvate, or rarely absent. The flowers have numerous exserted (i.e. protruding) stamens (>2× as many as

2491-668: The wild. More than 1,600 were kept in zoos in 2010. The name "giraffe" has its earliest known origins in the Arabic word zarāfah ( زرافة ), ultimately from Persian زُرنَاپَا ( zurnāpā ), a compound of زُرنَا ( zurnā , "flute, zurna") and پَا ( pā , "leg"). In early Modern English the spellings jarraf and ziraph were used, probably directly from the Arabic, and in Middle English jarraf and ziraph , gerfauntz . The Italian form giraffa arose in

2544-520: Was Giraffa sivalensis Falconer and Cautley 1843, a reevaluation of a vertebra that was initially described as a fossil of the living giraffe. While taxonomic opinion may be lacking on some names, the extinct species that have been published include: Fully grown giraffes stand 4.3–5.7 m (14–19 ft) tall, with males taller than females. The average weight is 1,192 kg (2,628 lb) for an adult male and 828 kg (1,825 lb) for an adult female. Despite its long neck and legs, its body

2597-544: Was born in 2002 at the Catskill Game Farm. Upon the closing of the Catskill Game Farm in October 2006, April was first sold to Adirondack Animal Land , in Vail Mills, New York; and then to Animal Adventure Park, in Harpursville, New York, in 2015, where she resided until her death on April 2, 2021. April became known internationally when a live video of the late stages of her pregnancy, along with her birth, were published on

2650-422: Was born there in 2002. The Inn opened on Tuesday, October 1, 2019, following an extensive renovation of the existing building. The inn features five guest rooms and four campsites. An exhibit of memorabilia highlighting the history of the former Catskill Game Farm is displayed at the inn. Giraffe See taxonomy The giraffe is a large African hoofed mammal belonging to the genus Giraffa . It

2703-668: Was likely a direct ancestor of the giraffe. Bohlinia closely resembled modern giraffes, having a long neck and legs and similar ossicones and dentition. Bohlinia colonised China and northern India and produced the Giraffa , which, around 7  million years ago , reached Africa. Climate changes led to the extinction of the Asian giraffes, while the African giraffes survived and radiated into new species. Living giraffes appear to have arisen around 1  million years ago in eastern Africa during

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2756-627: Was once much more extensive, with over 10 fossil genera described. The elongation of the neck appears to have started early in the giraffe lineage . Comparisons between giraffes and their ancient relatives suggest vertebrae close to the skull lengthened earlier, followed by lengthening of vertebrae further down. One early giraffid ancestor was Canthumeryx , which has been dated variously to have lived 25 to 20 million years ago , 17–15 mya or 18–14.3 mya and whose deposits have been found in Libya. This animal resembled an antelope and had

2809-418: Was then allowed to grow more exotic, and at the time of its closing, it hosted roughly 2,000 animals representing over 150 species, imported from around the world. The zoo spanned more than 914 acres (370 ha), most of which was used to breed animals for other zoos worldwide. Only about 136 acres (55 ha) were available for public viewing, and then only in the summer and autumn. A giraffe named April

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