In a recent
poll of the most iconic animals in Africa , the
giraffe surprisingly destroyed all its competition by an overwhelming
margin. Nothing in the bush causes more
oooh’s and aaaah’s than the elegant giraffe.
Sometimes it reminds me of bonfire night in England Africa and seen by few.
It is also an odd animal with a slightly elongated neck and stripes like
that of the zebra down its rump.
If not its
uniqueness, it must be its awkward, yet elegant grace. Those long legs move with consummate ease and
enable the giraffe to travel at surprising pace even though its strange gait of
moving both left legs and then both right legs makes it look rather
unstable. The way that the neck rocks as
it walks is mesmeric and I like to describe it as nature’s lava lamp. It seems to have the ability to de-stress people
by merely watching it carrying out its business. If giraffes had jobs, the giraffe would
surely be a counsellor or therapist!
Men, women and children alike seem to melt in their presence and a dumb
grin spreads unconsciously across their faces as they lose themselves in this
strange creation.
It is odd
to think that such a graceful animal has a violent streak in it but one must
remember that this is the wild and there are things to fight for: survival and
genetic success. Giraffes are capable of
killing with a single kick if defending themselves and many a lion has fallen
foul to a skull shattering, flailing limb.
The only way to ensure genetic survival is to find a mate and that must
be achieved through dominance, and that means combat. As a giraffe ages, calcium is deposited on
the skull to make it heavier, more robust and a more effective weapon. The thick ossicones (horns) that protrude
from their heads are used to great effect as they are swung at their opponents
with surprising force. Impacts can be
savage and giraffe have been knocked unconscious in these exchanges before!
Yesterday
afternoon, we were privy to watch a heated exchange between two young males as
they vied for the affections of a nearby female. They stood side by side, jostling each other
for position and swinging their necks with incredible ferocity. The flexibility of their necks defied belief
as they wound up blow after blow like a medieval knights wielding a mace. Perhaps even more impressive though were the
defensive manoeuvres as the combatants deflected and avoided each other’s
club-like skulls. It was a strange
spectacle to witness as we were torn between marvelling at the veritable ballet
of the dancing necks, and shocked by the brutality of the exchange. The thuds rang out through the bushveld and
winces of empathetic pain could be heard coming from the audience as their
notion of a peaceful and docile animal were shattered.
Even after
7 years, I often see things that I have never witnessed before, and this
exchange was no different. The two
giraffe seemed to have different tactics; one preferred to swing downwards and
concentrate on the flanks, whilst the other took the low road and swung upwards
into the stomach like an uppercut.
However, at one point, the latter giraffe got his head caught under the
leg of his opponent and as he raised his neck, the other giraffe found himself
in a rather ungainly position! It
resembled the giraffe equivalent of yoga as the one giraffe balanced
precariously on 3 limbs as his fourth was raised aloft by the other. The serious nature of the guests was suddenly
replaced by amusement as the two struggled to free themselves as they stumbled
through the undergrowth. After the
incident, the combative nature of the exchange died down, perhaps both parties
willing to compromise for now and rest their hyper extended limbs! I have never seen a giraffe do the splits and
now that I have, the spectacle will stay with me forever!
It was a
wonderful sighting full of intrigue and emotions as the guests got to absorb
the beauty of the gentle giant, yet had to re evaluate their presuppositions of
tranquillity as the heated battle raged.
Harmony was quickly restored however thanks to the rather light hearted
and comedic ending to the exchange and we left the sighting grinning from ear
to ear. Once again, the complexity of
nature had revealed itself but somehow, even in the midst of a brutal
confrontation, the giraffe had left us with a sighting we would never forget
and warm fuzzy feeling in our hearts.
