Giraffes have a genetic secret — there are four different species of tallest mammal on Earth, the BBC has reported. Although biologists have described variations with giraffes these differences have been attributed to “subspecies”, rather than genetically distinct species of the mammal. The single species was called Giraffa camelopardalis.
New research has found, based on a DNA study, that there are four species of giraffe. These giraffes have not cross-bred or exchanged genetic material for millions of years. The inference from this is that four populations of giraffe evolved into different species.
Giraffes are African even-toed ungulate mammals. They are not only the tallest living terrestrial animals, they are also the largest ruminants (which refers to mammals that acquire nutrients from plant-based food by fermenting it in a specialized stomach prior to digestion). Giraffes are spread across Africa: from Chad in the north to South Africa in the south, and from Niger in the west to Somalia in the east.
As a result of the new research, from a team led by Dr. Julian Fennessy (Senckenberg Biodiversity and Climate Research Center), the four recommended new species are:
The southern giraffe (Giraffa giraffa), with two subspecies,;
The reticulated giraffe (G. reticulata);
The Masai giraffe (G. tippelskirchi);
The northern giraffe (G. camelopardalis), with two subspecies.
The news does avoid the threatened status of giraffes. As The Guardian reports, giraffes have suffered a decline in number from around 150,000 across Africa three decades ago to 100,000 today. This is mainly through a loss of habitat as lands have been taken for agriculture. As Julian Fennessy, of Giraffe Conservation Foundation in Namibia, told The Independent: “With now four distinct species, the conservation status of each of these can be better defined.”
The findings are published in the journal Current Biology. The paper is titled “Multi-locus Analyses Reveal Four Giraffe Species Instead of One,.”
