West African giraffe
In the late 1990s, only 49 West African giraffes were left in the whole of West Africa, growing up to 600 individuals today, located solely in Niger.
The West African giraffe is a subspecies of the giraffe, recognizable thanks to its creamy color coat and rectangular brown marks, except on its lower legs.
As the tallest living mammal on earth, an adult male giraffe can reach on average 5,3m and 1 200kg and the female 4,3m for 830kg.
The giraffe’s prehensile tongue can be black, blue or purple and measure about 47cm! They use their tongue to remove tree leaves from Acacia and Balanites aegyptiaca.
The last remaining animals are concentrated in the Kouré region, in Niger.
In 2018 and 2022, with Giraffe Conservation Foundation, we contributed to two successful translocations of 12 West African giraffes to the Gadabeji Biosphere Reserve, to restore the species after 50 years of absence.
ID card
Scientific name:
Giraffa camelopardalis peralta
IUCN Red list status :
Vulnerable
How many left in the wild:
Close than 600 individuals
Geographic distribution:
Historically widespread throughout West Africa, Mauritania, Mali and Nigeria, the West African giraffe can only be found in Niger nowadays.
Threats and challenges
A combination of anthropic pressures is threatening the last population of West African giraffes.
The development of agriculture has led to habitat loss and degradation, as well as competition with humans and livestock.
Illegal killing and armed conflict have also caused its extinction from numerous African countries.
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