Masai giraffe

Short description: Subspecies of giraffe

Masai giraffe

Male at the San Diego Zoo
Female at the Louisville Zoo

Conservation status

Endangered (IUCN 3.1)[1]

Scientific classification
Kingdom:  | Animalia
Phylum:  | Chordata
Class:  | Mammalia
Order:  | Artiodactyla
Family:  | Giraffidae
Genus:  | Giraffa
Species:  |

G. c. tippelskirchii

Binomial name
Giraffa camelopardalis tippelskirchii

(Matschie, 1898)

Range map in blue

The Masai giraffe (Giraffa camelopardalis tippelskirchii), also spelled Maasai giraffe, 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.

## Contents

* 1 Taxonomy
* 2 Description
* 3 Conservation
* 4 Gallery
* 5 See also
* 6 References
* 7 External links

## Taxonomy

The IUCN currently recognizes only one species of giraffe with nine subspecies[1][2][3] The Masai giraffe was described and given the binomial name Giraffa tippelskirchi by German zoologist Paul Matschie in 1898, but current taxonomy refers to Masai giraffe as Giraffa camelopardalis tippelskirchi. The Masai giraffe was named in honor of Herr von Tippelskirch who was a member of a German scientific expedition in German East Africa to what is now northern Tanzania in 1896. Tippelskirch brought back the skin of a female Masai giraffe from near Lake Eyasi which was later on identified as Giraffa tippelskirchi. Alternative taxonomic hypotheses have proposed Masai giraffe may be its own species.[4]

## Description

The Masai giraffe is distinguished by jagged spots on its body, geographic range including southern Kenya and all of Tanzania, and genetic evidence.[5][6][7] It is the largest-bodied giraffe species, making it the tallest land animal on Earth.[5]

## Conservation

Masai giraffes are considered endangered by the IUCN,[1] and the Masai giraffe population declined 52% in recent decades due to poaching and habitat loss. Overall, the approximate number of all populations accumulate to 32,550 in the wild. Demographic studies of wild giraffes living inside and outside protected areas suggest low adult survival outside protected areas due to poaching, and low calf survival inside protected areas due to predation are the primary influences on population growth rates.[8][9] Survival of giraffe calves is influenced by the season of birth,[10] and the seasonal local presence or absence of long-distance migratory herds of wildebeest and zebra.[11] Metapopulation analysis indicated protected areas were important for keeping giraffes in the larger landscape.[12] In situ conservation of Masai giraffes is being done by several government agencies including Kenya Wildlife Service, Tanzania National Parks, Zambia Wildlife Authority; and non-governmental organizations including PAMS Foundation, and Wild Nature Institute. Community-based wildlife conservation areas have also been shown to be effective at protecting giraffes.[13][14] At several zoos, Masai giraffe have become pregnant and successfully given birth.[15]

## Gallery

* Masai giraffe in Serengeti National Park, Tanzania

* Detail of head, taken at Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Garden

* Two Masai giraffes in Mikumi National Park

* Two week-old Masai giraffes in Serengeti, Tanzania

* Close up of giraffe face in Masai Mara

## See also

* Maasai people

## References

1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Bolger, D.; Ogutu, J.; Strauss, M.; Lee, D.; Muneza, A.; Fennessy, J.; Brown, D. (2019). "Giraffa camelopardalis ssp. tippelskirchi". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2019: e.T88421036A88421121. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2019-1.RLTS.T88421036A88421121.en. https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/88421036/88421121. Retrieved 14 July 2019.
2. ↑ IUCN (2016). "Giraffa camelopardalis: Muller, Z., Bercovitch, F., Brand, R., Brown, D., Brown, M., Bolger, D., Carter, K., Deacon, F., Doherty, J.B., Fennessy, J., Fennessy, S., Hussein, A.A., Lee, D., Marais, A., Strauss, M., Tutchings, A. & Wube, T.". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. doi:10.2305/iucn.uk.2016-3.rlts.t9194a51140239.en.
3. ↑ Bercovitch, Fred B.; Berry, Philip S. M.; Dagg, Anne; Deacon, Francois; Doherty, John B.; Lee, Derek E.; Mineur, Frédéric; Muller, Zoe et al. (2017-02-20). "How many species of giraffe are there?" (in English). Current Biology 27 (4): R136–R137. doi:10.1016/j.cub.2016.12.039. ISSN 0960-9822. PMID 28222287. http://www.cell.com/current-biology/abstract/S0960-9822(16)31520-2.
4. ↑ Petzold, Alice; Hassanin, Alexandre (2020-02-13). "A comparative approach for species delimitation based on multiple methods of multi-locus DNA sequence analysis: A case study of the genus Giraffa (Mammalia, Cetartiodactyla)" (in en). PLOS ONE 15 (2): e0217956. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0217956. ISSN 1932-6203. https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0217956.
5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 Dagg, A.I.; Foster, J. B. (1982). The Giraffe. Its Biology, Behavior, and Ecology (with updated supplementary material). Malabar, Florida: Krieger Publishing Company.
6. ↑ Brown, David M.; Brenneman, Rick A.; Koepfli, Klaus-Peter; Pollinger, John P.; Milá, Borja; Georgiadis, Nicholas J.; Louis, Edward E.; Grether, Gregory F. et al. (2007-12-21). "Extensive population genetic structure in the giraffe". BMC Biology 5 (1): 57. doi:10.1186/1741-7007-5-57. ISSN 1741-7007. PMID 18154651.
7. ↑ Fennessy J.; Bidon T.; Reuss F.; Kumar V.; Elkan P.; Nilsson M.A.; Vamberger M.; Fritz U. et al. (2016). "Multi-locus Analyses Reveal Four Giraffe Species Instead of One". Current Biology 26 (18): 2543–2549. doi:10.1016/j.cub.2016.07.036. PMID 27618261.
8. ↑ Lee, Derek E.; Bond, Monica L.; Kissui, Bernard M.; Kiwango, Yustina A.; Bolger, Douglas T. (2016-05-11). "Spatial variation in giraffe demography: a test of 2 paradigms" (in en). Journal of Mammalogy 97 (4): 1015–1025. doi:10.1093/jmammal/gyw086. ISSN 0022-2372. http://jmammal.oxfordjournals.org/content/early/2016/05/10/jmammal.gyw086.
9. ↑ Lee, D. E.; Strauss, M. K. L (2016-01-01). Reference Module in Earth Systems and Environmental Sciences. Elsevier. doi:10.1016/B978-0-12-409548-9.09721-9. ISBN 9780124095489.
10. ↑ Lee, Derek Edward; Bond, Monica Louise; Bolger, Douglas Thomas (2017-01-01). "Season of birth affects juvenile survival of giraffe" (in en). Population Ecology 59 (1): 45–54. doi:10.1007/s10144-017-0571-8. ISSN 1438-3896.
11. ↑ Lee, Derek E.; Kissui, Bernard M.; Kiwango, Yustina A.; Bond, Monica L. (2016). "Migratory herds of wildebeests and zebras indirectly affect calf survival of giraffes" (in en). Ecology and Evolution 6 (23): 8402–8411. doi:10.1002/ece3.2561. ISSN 2045-7758. PMID 28031792.
12. ↑ Lee, Derek E.; Bolger, Douglas T. (2017-05-05). "Movements and source–sink dynamics of a Masai giraffe metapopulation" (in en). Population Ecology 59 (2): 157–168. doi:10.1007/s10144-017-0580-7. ISSN 1438-3896.
13. ↑ Lee, Derek E; Bond, Monica L (2018-02-26). "Quantifying the ecological success of a community-based wildlife conservation area in Tanzania" (in en). Journal of Mammalogy 99 (2): 459–464. doi:10.1093/jmammal/gyy014. ISSN 0022-2372. PMID 29867255.
14. ↑ Lee, Derek E. (2018-08-10). "Evaluating conservation effectiveness in a Tanzanian community wildlife management area" (in en). The Journal of Wildlife Management 82 (8): 1767–1774. doi:10.1002/jwmg.21549. ISSN 0022-541X.
15. ↑ Gregory, Kim Lamb (May 10, 2014). "Mothers' nature in the animal world" Ventura County Star

## External links

* v
* t
* e

Extant Artiodactyla species

* Kingdom: Animalia
* Phylum: Chordata
* Class: Mammalia
* Infraclass: Eutheria
* Superorder: Laurasiatheria

Suborder Ruminantia

| Antilocapridae|

| Antilocapra|

* Pronghorn (A. americana)

|

Giraffidae|

| Okapia|

* Okapi (O. johnstoni)

|

Giraffa|

* Northern giraffe (G. camelopardalis)
* Southern giraffe (G. giraffa)
* Reticulated giraffe (G. reticulata)
* Masai giraffe (G. tippelskirchi)

Moschidae|

| Moschus|

* Anhui musk deer (M. anhuiensis)
* Dwarf musk deer (M. berezovskii)
* Alpine musk deer (M. chrysogaster)
* Kashmir musk deer (M. cupreus)
* Black musk deer (M. fuscus)
* Himalayan musk deer (M. leucogaster)
* Siberian musk deer (M. moschiferus)

|

Tragulidae|

| Hyemoschus|

* Water chevrotain (H. aquaticus)

|

Moschiola|

* Indian spotted chevrotain (M. indica)
* Yellow-striped chevrotain (M. kathygre)
* Sri Lankan spotted chevrotain (M. meminna)

Tragulus|

* Java mouse-deer (T. javanicus)
* Lesser mouse-deer (T. kanchil)
* Greater mouse-deer (T. napu)
* Philippine mouse-deer (T. nigricans)
* Vietnam mouse-deer (T. versicolor)
* Williamson's mouse-deer (T. williamsoni)

Cervidae|

Large family listed below

Bovidae|

Large family listed below

Family Cervidae

| Cervinae|

| Muntiacus|

* Indian muntjac (M. muntjak)
* Reeves's muntjac (M. reevesi)
* Hairy-fronted muntjac (M. crinifrons)
* Fea's muntjac (M. feae)
* Bornean yellow muntjac (M. atherodes)
* Roosevelt's muntjac (M. rooseveltorum)
* Gongshan muntjac (M. gongshanensis)
* Giant muntjac (M. vuquangensis)
* Truong Son muntjac (M. truongsonensis)
* Leaf muntjac (M. putaoensis)
* Sumatran muntjac (M. montanus)
* Pu Hoat muntjac (M. puhoatensis)

|

Elaphodus|

* Tufted deer (E. cephalophus)

Dama|

* Fallow deer (D. dama)
* Persian fallow deer (D. mesopotamica)

Axis|

* Chital (A. axis)

Rucervus|

* Barasingha (R. duvaucelii)

Panolia|

* Eld's deer (P. eldii)

Elaphurus|

* Père David's deer (E. davidianus)

Hyelaphus|

* Hog deer (H. porcinus)
* Calamian deer (H. calamianensis)
* Bawean deer (H. kuhlii)

Rusa|

* Sambar (R. unicolor)
* Rusa deer (R. timorensis)
* Philippine sambar (R. mariannus)
* Philippine spotted deer (R. alfredi)

Cervus|

* Red deer (C. elaphus)
* Elk (C. canadensis)
* Thorold's deer (C. albirostris)
* Sika deer (C. nippon)

Capreolinae|

| Alces|

* Moose (A. alces)

|

Hydropotes|

* Water deer (H. inermis)

Capreolus|

* European roe deer (C. capreolus)
* Siberian roe deer (C. pygargus)

Rangifer|

* Reindeer (R. tarandus)

Hippocamelus|

* Taruca (H. antisensis)
* South Andean deer (H. bisulcus)

Mazama|

* Red brocket (M. americana)
* Small red brocket (M. bororo)
* Merida brocket (M. bricenii)
* Dwarf brocket (M. chunyi)
* Gray brocket (M. gouazoubira)
* Pygmy brocket (M. nana)
* Amazonian brown brocket (M. nemorivaga)
* Yucatan brown brocket (M. pandora)
* Little red brocket (M. rufina)
* Central American red brocket (M. temama)

Ozotoceros|

* Pampas deer (O. bezoarticus)

Blastocerus|

* Marsh deer (B. dichotomus)

Pudu|

* Northern pudú (P. mephistophiles)
* Southern pudú (P. pudu)

Odocoileus|

* White-tailed deer (O. virginianus)
* Mule deer (O. hemionus)

Family Bovidae

| Cephalophinae|

| Cephalophus|

* Abbott's duiker (C. spadix)
* Aders's duiker (C. adersi)
* Bay duiker (C. dorsalis)
* Black duiker (C. niger)
* Black-fronted duiker (C. nigrifrons)
* Brooke's duiker (C. brookei)
* Harvey's duiker (C. harveyi)
* Jentink's duiker (C. jentinki)
* Ogilby's duiker (C. ogilbyi)
* Peters' duiker (C. callipygus)
* Red-flanked duiker (C. rufilatus)
* Red forest duiker (C. natalensis)
* Ruwenzori duiker (C. rubidis)
* Weyns's duiker (C. weynsi)
* White-bellied duiker (C. leucogaster)
* White-legged duiker (C. crusalbum)
* Yellow-backed duiker (C. silvicultor)
* Zebra duiker (C. zebra)

|

Philantomba|

* Blue duiker (P. monticola)
* Maxwell's duiker (P. maxwellii)
* Walter's duiker (P. walteri)

Sylvicapra|

* Common duiker (S. grimmia)

Hippotraginae|

| Hippotragus|

* Roan antelope (H. equinus)
* Sable antelope (H. niger)

|

Oryx|

* East African oryx (O. beisa)
* Scimitar oryx (O. dammah)
* Gemsbok (O. gazella)
* Arabian oryx (O. leucoryx)

Addax|

* Addax (A. nasomaculatus)

Reduncinae|

| Kobus|

* Upemba lechwe (K. anselli)
* Waterbuck (K. ellipsiprymnus)
* Kob (K. kob)
* Lechwe (K. leche)
* Nile lechwe (K. megaceros)
* Puku (K. vardonii)

|

Redunca|

* Southern reedbuck (R. arundinum)
* Mountain reedbuck (R. fulvorufula)
* Bohor reedbuck (R. redunca)

Aepycerotinae|

| Aepyceros|

* Impala (A. melampus)

|

Peleinae|

| Pelea|

* Grey rhebok (P. capreolus)

|

Alcelaphinae|

| Beatragus|

* Hirola (B. hunteri)

|

Damaliscus|

* Topi (D. korrigum)
* Common tsessebe (D. lunatus)
* Bontebok (D. pygargus)
* Bangweulu tsessebe (D. superstes)

Alcelaphus|

* Hartebeest (A. buselaphus)
* Red hartebeest (A. caama)
* Lichtenstein's hartebeest (A. lichtensteinii)

Connochaetes|

* Black wildebeest (C. gnou)
* Blue wildebeest (C. taurinus)

Pantholopinae|

| Pantholops|

* Tibetan antelope (P. hodgsonii)

|

Caprinae|

Large subfamily listed below

Bovinae|

Large subfamily listed below

Antilopinae|

Large subfamily listed below

Family Bovidae (subfamily Caprinae)

| Ammotragus|

* Barbary sheep (A. lervia)

|

Budorcas|

* Takin (B. taxicolor)

Capra|

* Wild goat (C. aegagrus)
* Domestic goat (C. aegagrus hircus)
* West Caucasian tur (C. caucasia)
* East Caucasian tur (C. cylindricornis)
* Markhor (C. falconeri)
* Alpine ibex (C. ibex)
* Nubian ibex (C. nubiana)
* Iberian ibex (C. pyrenaica)
* Siberian ibex (C. sibirica)
* Walia ibex (C. walie)

Capricornis|

* Japanese serow (C. crispus)
* Taiwan serow (C. swinhoei)
* Sumatran serow (C. sumatraensis)
* Mainland serow (C. milneedwardsii)
* Red serow (C. rubidusi)
* Himalayan serow (C. thar)

Hemitragus|

* Nilgiri tahr (H. hylocrius)
* Arabian tahr (H. jayakari)
* Himalayan tahr (H. jemlahicus)

Naemorhedus|

* Red goral (N. baileyi)
* Long-tailed goral (N. caudatus)
* Himalayan goral (N. goral)
* Chinese goral (N. griseus)

Oreamnos|

* Mountain goat (O. americanus)

Ovibos|

* Muskox (O. moschatus)

Ovis|

* Argali (O. ammon)
* Domestic sheep (O. aries)
* Bighorn sheep (O. canadensis)
* Dall sheep (O. dalli)
* Mouflon (O. musimon)
* Snow sheep (O. nivicola)
* Urial (O. orientalis)

Pseudois|

* Bharal (P. nayaur)
* Dwarf blue sheep (P. schaeferi)

Rupicapra|

* Pyrenean chamois (R. pyrenaica)
* Alpine chamois (R. rupicapra)

Family Bovidae (subfamily Bovinae)

| Boselaphini|

| Tetracerus|

* Four-horned antelope (T. quadricornis)

|

Boselaphus|

* Nilgai (B. tragocamelus)

Bovini|

| Bubalus|

* Domestic water buffalo (B. bubalis)
* Wild water buffalo (B. arnee)
* Lowland anoa (B. depressicornis)
* Mountain anoa (B. quarlesi)
* Tamaraw (B. mindorensis)

|

Bos|

* Banteng (B. javanicus)
* Gaur (B. gaurus)
* Gayal (B. frontalis)
* Domestic yak (B. grunniens)
* Wild yak (B. mutus)
* Cattle (B. taurus)
* Kouprey (B. sauveli)

Pseudonovibos|

* Kting voar (P. spiralis)

Pseudoryx|

* Saola (P. nghetinhensis)

Syncerus|

* African buffalo (S. caffer)

Bison|

* American bison (B. bison)
* European bison (B. bonasus)

Tragelaphini|

| Tragelaphus
(including kudus)|

* Sitatunga (T. spekeii)
* Nyala (T. angasii)
* Harnessed bushbuck (T. scriptus)
* Cape bushbuck (T. sylvaticus)
* Mountain nyala (T. buxtoni)
* Lesser kudu (T. imberbis)
* Greater kudu (T. strepsiceros)
* Bongo (T. eurycerus)

|

Taurotragus|

* Common eland (T. oryx)
* Giant eland (T. derbianus)

Family Bovidae (subfamily Antilopinae)

| Antilopini|

| Ammodorcas|

* Dibatag (A. clarkei)

|

Antidorcas|

* Springbok (A. marsupialis)

Antilope|

* Blackbuck (A. cervicapra)

Eudorcas|

* Mongalla gazelle (E. albonotata)
* Red-fronted gazelle (E. rufifrons)
* Thomson's gazelle (E. thomsonii)
* Heuglin's gazelle (E. tilonura)

Gazella|

* Mountain gazelle (G. gazella)
* Neumann's gazelle (G. erlangeri)
* Speke's gazelle (G. spekei)
* Dorcas gazelle (G. dorcas)
* Chinkara (G. bennettii)
* Cuvier's gazelle (G. cuvieri)
* Rhim gazelle (G. leptoceros)
* Goitered gazelle (G. subgutturosa)

Litocranius|

* Gerenuk (L. walleri)

Nanger|

* Dama gazelle (N. dama)
* Grant's gazelle (N. granti)
* Soemmerring's gazelle (N. soemmerringii)

Procapra|

* Mongolian gazelle (P. gutturosa)
* Goa (P. picticaudata)
* Przewalski's gazelle (P. przewalskii)

Saigini|

| Pantholops|

* Tibetan antelope (P. hodgsonii)

|

Saiga|

* Saiga antelope (S. tatarica)

Neotragini|

| Dorcatragus|

* Beira (D. megalotis)

|

Madoqua|

* Günther's dik-dik (M. guentheri)
* Kirk's dik-dik (M. kirkii)
* Silver dik-dik (M. piacentinii)
* Salt's dik-dik (M. saltiana)

Neotragus|

* Bates' pygmy antelope (N. batesi)
* Suni (N. moschatus)
* Royal antelope (N. pygmaeus)

Oreotragus|

* Klipspringer (O. oreotragus)

Ourebia|

* Oribi (O. ourebi)

Raphicerus|

* Steenbok (R. campestris)
* Cape grysbok (R. melanotis)
* Sharpe's grysbok (R. sharpei)

Suborder Suina

| Suidae|

| Babyrousa|

* Buru babirusa (B. babyrussa)
* North Sulawesi babirusa (B. celebensis)
* Togian babirusa (B. togeanensis)

|

Hylochoerus|

* Giant forest hog (H. meinertzhageni)

Phacochoerus|

* Desert warthog (P. aethiopicus)
* Common warthog (P. africanus)

Porcula|

* Pygmy hog (P. salvania)

Potamochoerus|

* Bushpig (P. larvatus)
* Red river hog (P. porcus)

Sus
(Pigs)|

* Palawan bearded pig (S. ahoenobarbus)
* Bornean bearded pig (S. barbatus)
* Indochinese warty pig (S. bucculentus)
* Visayan warty pig (S. cebifrons)
* Celebes warty pig (S. celebensis)
* Flores warty pig (S. heureni)
* Oliver's warty pig (S. oliveri)
* Philippine warty pig (S. philippensis)
* Wild boar (S. scrofa)
* Timor warty pig (S. timoriensis)
* Javan warty pig (S. verrucosus)

Tayassuidae|

| Tayassu|

* White-lipped peccary (T. pecari)

|

Catagonus|

* Chacoan peccary (C. wagneri)

Pecari|

* Collared peccary (P. tajacu)
* Giant peccary (P. maximus)

Suborder Tylopoda

| Camelidae|

| Lama|

* Llama (L. glama)
* Guanaco (L. guanicoe)

|

Vicugna|

* Vicuña (V. vicugna)
* Alpaca (V. pacos)

Camelus|

* Dromedary/Arabian camel (C. dromedarius)
* Domestic Bactrian camel (C. bactrianus)
* Wild Bactrian camel (C. ferus)

Whippomorpha (unranked clade)

| Hippopotamidae|

| Hippopotamus|

* Hippopotamus (H. amphibius)

|

Choeropsis|

* Pygmy hippopotamus (C. liberiensis)

Wikidata ☰ Q27497247 entry

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