Lamarck, a French biologist, put forward some famous theories, such as "using it to waste and returning it" and "inheriting acquired traits". He believes that the area where giraffe ancestors lived has become an arid area due to changes in natural conditions, and grass is scarce. In order to survive, giraffes have to eat leaves from tall trees to satisfy their hunger. In order to achieve this goal, they make special efforts to stretch their necks. Because the frequently used organs are more developed, the unused organs will degenerate, and the acquired traits can be inherited, so that after continuous changes from generation to generation, the neck will gradually become longer.

Giraffe's long neck and long legs are also good cooling towers. They live in the hot savanna, and because of their large surface area, they are conducive to heat dissipation and can adapt to the surrounding environment well. Lung capacity is also large, which is conducive to breathing fresh air and discharging waste gas. Giraffes are inconvenient to drink water because of their long legs. They have to spread their front legs or kneel on the ground to drink water. When drinking water, they are very vulnerable to other animals, so giraffes who live in groups often don't drink together.

Extended data

According to fossil records, giraffes first differentiated from deer in the early Miocene. The earliest giraffe fossils are Climacoceras and Canthumeryx. Later, it evolved into an ancient giraffe, a giraffe ancestor with short horns and short necks in the early Miocene. By the late Miocene, Gu Lin had evolved into Samotherium. In Pliocene, Samoan animals were divided into two branches, one was Hogan and the other was the earliest modern giraffe.

Hogan is one of the only two animals left in the giraffe family, and its appearance basically reflects the appearance of the Miocene giraffe, which is very rare. This is a representative species of Guriaceae, which is distributed in the tropical rain forest in eastern Congo, Africa, and maintains many primitive characteristics.

Sogou encyclopedia-giraffe