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Giraffes are beautiful creatures. Here are some giraffe facts:

• Giraffes live 20 to 25 years.
• Different species of giraffe have different spot patterns. In one species, the reticulated giraffe, spots darken from tan to a deep chocolate brown as the giraffe ages.
• Giraffes have little horns covered with skin and tufts of hair on the top of their heads. The size of the horns is different in the different species. Since giraffes are closely related to deer, it is thought that these little horns are the remnant of a time when giraffes may have had antlers.
• Giraffes do occasionally sit and they often lie down to sleep.
• Giraffes only sleep for a few minutes at a time, the most being 20 minutes.
• While giraffes are usually quiet, they sometimes grunt, snort, or bleat.
• Adult males can weigh more than a ton (2,000 lbs.). Some weigh two tons!
• Giraffes are found in East Africa and in many African countries that lie south of the Sahara Desert, or in “sub-Saharan Africa.”
• The word “giraffe” means “the tallest of them all” and comes from the Arabic word “zirafah.”
• Giraffes are herbivores, which means they only eat plants. Their favorite plants are Acacia and Combretum trees.