Researchers Spent More Than A Decade Comparing The DNA Of Giraffes, And Found They Can Be Divided Into Four Species

If there’s any animal that’s easy to recognize, it would have to be the giraffe. With their towering height, elegant strides, and distinct coat patterns, they stand out from any other creature on the planet. When just looking at giraffes, it appears that there is only one kind.
But after researchers spent more than a decade comparing the DNA of giraffes from all parts of Africa, they found that giraffes can actually be divided into four species: the southern giraffe (Giraffa giraffa), the Masai (Giraffa tippelskirchi), the reticulated giraffe (Giraffa reticulata), and the northern giraffe (Giraffa cameloparadalis).
Different species of giraffes face different risks. Some of them are among the world’s most threatened large mammals.
The southern and the Masai giraffe populations are plentiful, with their numbers estimated at about 45,000 and 50,000, respectively.
But for the reticulated and northern giraffes, the situation is more dim and grim. According to the Giraffe Conservation Foundation (GCF), only 16,000 and 6,000 wild individuals, respectively, remain.
That’s why it’s so important to confirm whether there are different species of giraffe so that conservation efforts can be focused on the species with the highest risk of endangerment. In a new study, a team of researchers examined the skulls of over 500 giraffes from across Africa.
They were able to show major differences in the skull shapes of different giraffes and confirm that there are indeed four species.
They used a handheld 3D scanner to capture the shapes of the skulls. Then, they used 3D geometric morphometrics methods to make comparisons of the skull shapes.
The skull variations between the four species were found mostly in the ossicones, horn-like structures on the head that are wider in males than in females.

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However, there were also minor differences in their face, eye sockets, the area around the teeth, and the back portion of the skull.
The most notable difference was in the median ossicone of the males. It is a third, smaller ossicone positioned in the skull’s midline above the eyes.
In the southern giraffe, the third ossicone is like a small protrusion. In the northern giraffe, it is pointed and large. In the Masai and reticulated giraffes, the third ossicone is somewhere between those two forms.
These differences likely help the giraffes distinguish between species and recognize one another. Males with more developed ossicones scare off their rivals to attract females and claim territory.
While the study demonstrates that four giraffe species exist, the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) only recognizes one species of giraffe, lumping them all into one threatened category.
The study authors believe that the IUCN needs to reassess its status so that each giraffe species can receive the care and attention they require before it’s too late.
The research was published in PLOS One.
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