Animal photography… the giraffe

^{The Giraffe - designed with Canva}

19! This is the number of National Parks in South Africa of which the largest, The Kruger National Park, is as big as Belgium.

There are also plenty of game reserves, farms, and lodges that are privately owned. No wonder South Africa is such a big tourist attraction for its wild life. "Come to South Africa and we will show you."

The Big 5 (buffalo, elephant, leopard, lion, and rhino) roam in these parks.

It always gives us great pleasure to visit a wildlife reserve. Not only is it an outing for the family but it is also a day of slowing down and enjoying what nature has to offer. We will drive around for hours in these parks looking for animals. So often they are missed as they are clever things, hiding in the long grass, behind the bushes or amongst the trees.

"Kyk daar!" (Look there!) A shout that one of us will give every now and again.

For one of these animals, the giraffe, it is difficult to hide. With its long neck it is more visible. I cannot remember one game drive where we did not encounter giraffes.

I don’t look for the Big 5, no, I look for the giraffes, as it gives me endless pleasure watching them when they move. They are so graceful, peaceful, and captivated.

For me, I don’t have to sit in an opera house to watch the ballet Swan Lake, no, it is performed under the blue sky of my own "back yard."

Did you know?

• They are the tallest animals we will find on Mother Earth.
• Like our fingerprints, which are unique to us, not two giraffes have the same patches.
• They use their long necks to be on the lookout for predators just like the scopes of a submarine.
• Their tongues are blue to protect them from the sun as they stick them out a lot as they are constantly eating.
• They can eat up to +/- 42 kilograms of twigs and leaves in a single day.

• Their mouths are protected on the inside so that thorns on branches cannot hurt them.
• They don’t drink a lot of water and when they do it looks extremely funny as they must stretch their legs sideways to get their heads closer to the water.
• They are dangerous even though they are known as friendly and sociable animals. Not only can they run fast, but they can also kick very powerful kicks with hooves as massive as a 30 cm dinner plate.
• When they give birth the baby giraffe drops about 2 meters to the ground and within an hour it will start walking just like its mom. During this time the mother is extremely protective over her baby as it is an easy prey.

Oh yes, I can hear you ask, "Does a giraffe stand or lay down when it sleeps?" The answer is both. They can stand and lay down to sleep. They prefer to stand during the short sleep intervals they take due to the fact that they are easier prey when they are laying on the ground.

Giraffes, my favorite animal in the wild.

^{The photos are my own taken with my mobile phone in the Hluhluwe Game Reserve, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. The facts I am sharing was made known to us while on a game drive}

Location Google Maps

THIS IS AFRICA!

10% to @steem.ofanimals

^{Vote @pennsif.witness for growth across the Steemit platform through robust communication at all levels and targeted high yield developments with the resources available.}

^{Vote here}