Catching up on Giraffe News

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Check out my T-shirt! I bought it
to support GCF. The mask came
from Etsy, so not a donation
purchase.
It's week 2 of the month, so that means I'm sharing giraffe news!

I follow GCF (Giraffe Conservation Foundation) on social media, so when a podcast interview with Dr. Julain Fennessy showed up in my Facebook feed this week, I couldn't wait to listen to it. The 55-minute interview by All Creatures Podcast provides a great and comprehensive introduction to the history and mission of this crucial organization.

GCF podcast interview

Crucial Facts

For those of you who can't listen right away, I thought I'd share a few crucial points:

  • There are approximately 111,000 giraffe in the wild today. To put this in perspective, there are roughly 4 elephants for each giraffe, yet elephants receive more press about being endangered. The giraffe is experiencing a "silent extinction."
  • New evidence points to the existence of 4 species of giraffes, not one:  Masai, Northern, Reticulated, and Southern. Of these 4 species, three of them are dangerously low in population.
    • Masai population - 35,000.
    • Reticulated population  - 15,780
    • Northern population - 5600

Podcast Discussion

In the podcast, Dr. Fennessy, also, discusses many aspects of giraffe conservation including:
  • Why giraffe get less publicity
  • What the new classification of species means for this endangered animal
  • What's contributing to the huge decline in numbers
  • How GCF works with other organizations to conserve giraffe
  • How and why GCF translocates giraffe

The podcast runs just under one hour, but you'll learn a lot about GCF and their efforts to save the giraffe and educate the public about their plight.

Giraffe Calf Video

Just for fun, I thought I'd share this video I shot on my phone several years ago. Based on the date, I believe this is Kiko at the Greenville Zoo in Greenville, SC. He now lives in the Toronto Zoo and is not so small anymore. Kiko is a Masai giraffe.

Frolicking Baby Giraffe Video

GCF Information and Donations

Also, please drop by the GCF website and consider donating to their worthwhile work. They provide many options including adoption and cool clothing (see my T-shirt in the pic above).



Subscribe

If you enjoyed this post, consider joining the Watcher Tribe by subscribing to my newsletter. Every new subscriber receives a digital photo of a 4-day-old giraffe and will be entered into The Watchers of Moniah  book launch prize pack. The launch is scheduled for December and the prize pack will include wonderful goodies including a signed copy of The Watchers of Moniah. Barbara plans to donate a percentage of her book's earnings to GCF, too.

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