Only Seven Vertebrae

New Zealand Listener, Volume 4, Issue 83, 24 January 1941, Page 5

Only Seven Vertebrae

HE giraffe, which is found only in Africa, 1s easily the tallest of all living creatures. He holds his lofty title on two grounds-the length of his legs as well as the length of his neck, up to 19 feet is an average height for a giraffe. A baby giraffe is 5 feet high when he is born. If a giraffe happened

to pass your house he couid easily look into your bedroom if you live in a two-story house. But though the giraffe’s neck is so long it contains only 7 vertebrae, and that is. just the same number as you or I have in our neck. Vertebrae are those nobbly pieces of bone you can feel in your neck. The reason. the giraffe’s neck is so long is because each vertebra is so very

big. Though the giraffe looks so slender, he is really very heavy-he weighs over half a ton. The food the giraffe likes best is the leaves of the Acacia tree. Giraffes will often be seen browsing among these trees, just picking off the choice top leaves, stretching their long necks to reach them. The giraffe’s upper lip is long and covered with a thick velvety coating of short hair. The tongue is 18 inches in length, and with its tongue it pulls off the leaves. He does not bite at the leaves, but curls his tongue round them. The giraffe walks in a very strange way-it is an easy, shuffling walk, but very "quick. He’d soon leave you behind, and when he gallops

he certaitity does move. It takes a very swift horse to catch up with him. The giraffe gets along by moving the two legs on either side of his body at once, so that, as he gallops he seems to rock,-("Creatures of the Wild," by. " Hinemoa,’ 2YA, Children’s Hour, January 8.)