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==Descrizione e anatomia==
[[File:Giraffe08 - melbourne zoo.jpg|thumb|thumb|Primo piano della testa di una giraffa allo [[zoo di Melbourne]].]]
[[File:Giraffe skeleton.jpg|thumb|
Fully grown giraffes stand {{convert|5|–|6|m|abbr=on}} tall, with males taller than females.<ref name="Dagg1971">{{Cite journal|author=Dagg, A. I.|year=1971|title=Giraffa camelopardalis|journal= Mammalian Species|volume=5|pages=1–8|url= http://www.science.smith.edu/msi/pdf/i0076-3519-005-01-0001.pdf|doi=10.2307/3503830|issue=5|jstor=3503830}}</ref> The average weight is {{convert|1192|kg|lb|abbr=on}} for an adult male and {{convert|828|kg|lb|abbr=on}} for an adult female<ref name="Skinner1990">{{Cite book|author=Skinner, J. D.; Smithers, R. H. M.|year=1990|title=The mammals of the southern African subregion|pages=616–20|publisher=University of Pretoria|isbn=0-521-84418-5}}</ref> with maximum weights of {{convert|1930|kg|lb|abbr=on}} and {{convert|1180|kg|lb|abbr=on}} having been recorded for males and females, respectively.<ref name="OwenSmith1988">Owen-Smith, R.N. 1988. Megaherbivores: The Influence of Very Large Body Size on Ecology. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.</ref> Despite its long neck and legs, the giraffe's body is relatively short.<ref name=anatomy/>{{rp|66}} Located at both sides of the head, the giraffe's large, bulging eyes give it good all-round vision from its great height.<ref name=Williams/>{{rp|25}} Giraffes see in colour<ref name=Williams/>{{rp|26}} and their senses of hearing and [[olfaction|smell]] are also sharp.<ref name="Prothero 2003"/> The animal can close its muscular nostrils to protect against sandstorms and ants.<ref name=Williams/>{{rp|27}} The giraffe's [[prehensile]] tongue is about {{convert|50|cm|in|abbr=on}} long. It is purplish-black in colour, perhaps to protect against sunburn, and is useful for grasping foliage, as well as for grooming and cleaning the animal's nose.<ref name=Williams/>{{rp|27}} The upper lip of the giraffe is also prehensile and useful when foraging. The lips, tongue, and inside of the mouth are covered in [[Taste bud|papillae]] to protect against thorns.<ref name="Dagg1971"/>
[[File:Giraffa camelopardalis reticulata-atTobuZoo-2012.ogv|thumb|(video) A pair of giraffes at [[Tobu Zoo]], in [[Saitama prefecture|Saitama]], Japan]]
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