Nubian giraffe

Taxonomy and evolution

The IUCN currently recognizes only one species of giraffe with nine subspecies, one of which is the Nubian giraffe. The Nubian giraffe, along with the whole species, were first known by the binomen Cervus camelopardalis described by Swedish zoologist Carl Linnaeus in the Systema Naturæ per regna tria naturæ, secundum classes, ordines, genera, species, cum characteribus, differentiis, synonymis, locis in 1758. He described the giraffe from Ethiopia or Sennar of Eastern Sudan.

A 2016 analysis of giraffe subspecies proposed the Rothschild's giraffe (G. c. rothschildi) could be considered a conspecific ecotype of the Nubian giraffe, however these results are not definitive.

Following Linnaeus's description of the Nubian giraffe, several specimens were described by other naturalists and zoologists since the end of the 18th century under different scientific names, which are all considered synonyms of Giraffa camelopardalis camelopardalis today:

• G. c. aethiopicus by Ogilby, 1836
• G. c. senaariensis by Trouessart, 1898
• G. c. typica by Bryden, 1899
• G. c. rothschildi by Lydekker, 1903
• G. c. congoensis by Lydekker, 1903

Physical description

The Nubian giraffe has sharply defined chestnut-colored spots surrounded by mostly white lines, while undersides lack spotting. The median lump is particularly developed in the male giraffe.

Habitat population

Giraffes occurred everywhere in Africa; the Nubian giraffe was widespread throughout North Africa, from Kenya to Egypt. The giraffe lives in savannahs and woodlands. The Nubian giraffe currently lives in eastern South Sudan and southwestern Ethiopia, and isolated pockets in Uganda and Kenya. It was estimated in 2010 that fewer than 250 live in the wild, although this number was uncertain. However, as of 2016, it was recently estimated that 2,150 Nubian giraffes live in the wild, 1,500 of those of the Rothschild's ecotype.

In captivity

The Nubian giraffe is, due to the introduction of the Rothschild's giraffe into its subspecies, one of the most common giraffe types present in captivity, in conjunction with the reticulated giraffe. However, the original phenotype is rare, as the Al Ain Zoo from the United Arab Emirates is the only known zoo outside of Africa to be breeding the endangered original phenotype. The Nubian giraffe is also breeding in captivity in Giza Zoo, Egypt.