Anthrax and rinderpest are diseases that not commonly or frequently attack them, but when an epizootic affect a population, some get temporarily blind and die. For the giraffes, their risk does not end escaping from the dangerous animals, because their worst predators by far are humans.
The natives consider them a source of meat when others are scarce. They also believe that the tails of giraffes are good luck so that they try to get one.
The human being is also considered a dangerous predator to giraffes. The populations living in the north have reduced their numbers dramatically for two main reasons: degradation of their natural habitat and poaching, which is the case in Kenya, Somalia, and Ethiopia, despite the fact that national parks are struggling to preserve them. In some villages, those tails are used to create jewelry, collectibles for tourists, and even flyswatters for the huge mosquitoes out there.
The coats are spectacular due to their thickness and the design of the different spots that each giraffe has. Also, many of these animals become nothing but the trophy of hunter that want to say they have killed an exotic animal. While most areas of Africa make it illegal to harm or to kill a giraffe due to their conservation status it occurs on a regular basis.
Villagers are desperate to make money so they will do what they can to survive. Rafferty, John. P Grazers Britannica Guide to Predators and Prey.
Out of their new curiosity and lack of awareness about predators, baby giraffes will try to explore, making them an easy target for lions. But lions rarely hunt alone. A pride of lions works excellent as a team in assaulting their prey from a number of points.
Even for a pride of lions, taking down a tall tower of a beast is not an easy job to accomplish, but they do have some excellent and well-honed tactics to give their giraffe hunting a greater chance of success. Lions rely on their strong and powerful forelimbs and their retractable claws for initially grappling with their prey. They use these to grab hold and maintain a purchase on the prey.
Other predators like Hyenas prey on giraffes using their strong teeth and jaws. So when a hyena hunts a giraffe they leave puncture wounds on the body, along with the traces of their teeth carved on the skin of giraffes.
These traces are more akin to deep scratch marks similar to that of fingernails dragged through the mud. These claw marks are usually found on the hindquarters of giraffes. This demonstrates that lions generally attack giraffes from behind.
Finally and the most important reason is, the skin and the front part of the body including the neck are generally thicker. Thicker skin is more difficult for the lion to penetrate.
Who else hunts giraffes? Read this article to find out. Giraffes are social animals and they usually live in herds. But, compared to other animal species, their social bond is not as strong. Hence, many giraffes live outside the groups. A giraffe is too large for the lion to pounce directly to its neck. After many bites and claw wounds, a giraffe would start to be less and less resistant.
More lions would start leaping on its back. Eventually, a giraffe would get knocked down. And once it is down, all pack members would start preying on an animal. Even though they look peaceful and feeble giraffes are not easy prey. And big cats do not every time manage to prey on a lanky animal. In other words, a lot of giraffes managed to defend themselves from lions.
Yet, these scars are not found in young ones. When lions grab giraffe calves, they most likely take them down every time. When attacked, adult giraffes would protect themselves by kicking lions with their fore or hind legs. With an average weight of pounds, their strong hooves can be lethal for lions. In fact, in many cases, some lion pack members suffer fatal injuries when attacking a giraffe.
And because of that, adult giraffes are not the number one food source for powerful predators. However, there are cases when only two adult lions managed to take down a giraffe. While they are social animals, typically travelling in herds of 10 to 20 animals, ranging all the way up to 70, these herds can be of varying composition. Some are all female, others are all male, and still others are a mix. Individuals enter and leave each herd freely, and the animals are not territorial.
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