A few days old …

This – only a few days old – baby Giraffe is already firm on its feet following mum around the reserve. While his mother was chewing on a bone to augment her calcium intake the calf had a prolonged drink! Then a large male showed up and spent a short while with both of them before he wandered off in search for some food.

More about Giraffes:

Giraffe gestation last about 16 month, after which normally a single calf is born. The mother gives birth standing up. The calf emerges head and front legs first and falls to the ground, severing the umbilical cord. The mother then grooms the newborn and helps it stand up. A newborn giraffe is ~1.8m (~6″) tall. Within a few hours of birth, the calf can walk and is almost indistinguishable from a one-week-old. The ossicones, which have lain flat while it was in the womb, become erect within a few days. This indicates that the little one in these pictures is only a few days old, as the ossicones are not fully up yet!

For more pictures go to https://thandablog.com/2016/10/01/a-few-days-old/

Picture(s) by Christian Sperka – Resident Wildlife Photographer – Thanda Safari

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