Stripping the Bark!
The Maasai giraffe (Giraffa camelopardalis tippelskirchi), also called Kilimanjaro giraffe, is the largest subspecies of giraffe. It is native to East Africa. The Masai giraffe can be found in central and southern Kenya and in Tanzania.
It has distinctive, irregular, jagged, star-like blotches that extend to the hooves. A median forehead lump is usually present in bulls.
The giraffe's prehensile tongue is about 45 cm (18 in) long. It is purplish-black in colour, perhaps to protect against sunburn, and is useful for grasping foliage, as well as for grooming and cleaning the animal's nose. The upper lip of the giraffe is also prehensile and useful when foraging and is covered in hair to protect against thorns. The tongue and inside of the mouth are covered in papillae.
This handsome Giraffe was walking along the Acacia Thorn Trees and stripping the bark off the trees and eating it. Photographed on a late evening game drive in the Crater Lake Sanctuary, Naivasha, Kenya.
Stripping the Bark!
The Maasai giraffe (Giraffa camelopardalis tippelskirchi), also called Kilimanjaro giraffe, is the largest subspecies of giraffe. It is native to East Africa. The Masai giraffe can be found in central and southern Kenya and in Tanzania.
It has distinctive, irregular, jagged, star-like blotches that extend to the hooves. A median forehead lump is usually present in bulls.
The giraffe's prehensile tongue is about 45 cm (18 in) long. It is purplish-black in colour, perhaps to protect against sunburn, and is useful for grasping foliage, as well as for grooming and cleaning the animal's nose. The upper lip of the giraffe is also prehensile and useful when foraging and is covered in hair to protect against thorns. The tongue and inside of the mouth are covered in papillae.
This handsome Giraffe was walking along the Acacia Thorn Trees and stripping the bark off the trees and eating it. Photographed on a late evening game drive in the Crater Lake Sanctuary, Naivasha, Kenya.