Giraffes are quiet and peaceful animals. They are very intelligent.

They live in groups called 'towers'. 10-20 giraffes may live in a tower but there can be as many as 50. The towers are usually lead by an older female. Because of their size, their only predators are lions and crocodiles. Staying with the group helps them to look out for each other.

There are 9 different kinds of giraffes. Only 2 of those are endangered. There are about 117,000 giraffes left in Africa. They are still hunted for their meat and body parts.

predators: animals that hunt other animals for food

Giraffes are the tallest mammals on Earth. They are 14-19 feet tall. (Around 4-6 metres). Their legs are extremely long and at 6 feet (1.8 metres) their legs are taller than most people! They are fast runners. 

Because their legs and necks are so long, giraffes stand up most of the time. How do they sleep? Standing, of course. They don't need much sleep, though. 10 minutes to 2 hours is enough.

Everyone knows a giraffe by its very long neck. But do you know that they also have very long tongues? Giraffe tongues are black and about 18 inches / 45 cm long. This is so they can wrap their tongues around hard-to-reach leaves. 

Giraffes also have excellent eyesight. Because of this, and because they are so tall, they can see danger far away.

Giraffes are herbivores. This means that they eat plants and no meat. They eat leaves, buds, flowers and some fruit. They sometimes eat grass, but it is difficult to reach and they must spread their legs to reach it.

Giraffes spend 16-20 hours a day eating! They eat up to 75 lbs (34 kg) of food every day. However, they don't need much water. They drink about 2 gallons(7.5 litres) of water each week but can go weeks or even months with none at all!

Giraffe babies are very big when they are born! They are already 6 feet ( 1.9 metres) tall and may weigh 150 pounds (68 kg)! They can stand up 30 minutes after they are born.

Baby giraffes are called calves and stick close to their mothers until about 2 years after they are born.