photo credit: Bertie Guillaume
Botlierskop Private Game Reserve in Mossel Bay has welcomed their 4th giraffe calf this weekend. This is the fourth calf born in the last five years and they now have a total of 11 on the reserve.
Fun facts:
Giraffes have a gestation period of 15 months.
A calf fully develops after 400-470 days.
When born a calf can drop 1.8 meters to the ground which helps the umbilical cord to break.
At birth, a giraffe weighs between 50-70 kg.
A calf can stand up and walk after about an hour and within a week, it starts to sample vegetation.
Giraffes grow up to 2.5cm every day during the first week of their lives and will have roughly doubled in size by the time they celebrate their first birthday.
