How can we imagine a world in which giraffe no longer exist in the wild? Giraffe are in rapid decline across the African continent, in what has been termed: the ‘silent extinction’. According to a 2015 report by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN), wild giraffe numbers have dropped from an estimated 155,000 in 1985 to 97,000 in 2015 representing a population decline of more than 30% in just fifteen years (three giraffe generations). Reflecting this trend, the IUCN global Red List of threatened species recently updated the giraffe's status from "Least Concern" to “Vulnerable”.

WHO'S WHO IN THE GIRAFFE WORLD?

Recent first-ever comprehensive DNA sampling and analysis by the Giraffe Conservation Foundation and partners has revealed that there are four distinct species and nine subspecies of giraffe in Africa. All species and subspecies live in distinct areas across Africa. This is important information as some subspecies have very small populations, such as the West African giraffe, for which today there are under 600 remaining individuals. With this information, more attention can be brought to the ‘silent extinction’ of giraffes, and conservation efforts can be fortified for the most at-risk subspecies.  Without increased awareness, the unique and important subspecies of this beloved animal will continue to slide quietly toward extinction.

WHY ARE GIRAFFE IN TROUBLE?

Giraffes face three main threats – habitat loss, deforestation, and bushmeat poaching. They are already extinct in seven countries: Burkina Faso, Eritrea, Guinea, Malawi, Mauritania, Nigeria, and Senegal.

Across Africa, giraffe are victims of bushmeat myths - in Tanzania, some are poached due to a false hope that giraffe brains and bone marrow can cure HIV. The San people of the Kalahari believe giraffe blood can change the weather, and in the Congo, giraffe tails are used for marriage dowries.

The biggest issue of all, beyond the horror of bushmeat poaching, is habitat loss. Giraffe's grazing areas have been fragmented, fenced off, split by roads, deforested, drilled for oil, and mined. Saving habitat for all wildlife including giraffe is imperative. An updated study took a census of all life on Earth and found that 83% of all wild mammals have vanished with the rise of human civilization. Just 4% of all mammals on the planet today live in the wild. The remaining 96% of mammals living on the planet today are livestock and humans.

“It is definitely striking, our disproportionate place on Earth,” said Professor Ron Milo, the author of the study. “When I do a puzzle with my daughters, there is usually an elephant next to a giraffe next to a rhino. But if I was trying to give them a more realistic sense of the world, it would be a cow next to a cow next to a cow and then a chicken.”

The destruction of wild habitats for farming, logging, and development has resulted in what is being called the sixth mass extinction.  According to the World Wildlife Fund, approximately half of the Earth's animals have been lost in the last 50 years. On our watch.

Despite this overwhelming bad news for wildlife, a glimmer of hope shines for giraffe in southern Africa where their population has increased by two to three times in the last fifteen years. And at Wild Tomorrow Fund's Greater Ukuwela Nature Reserve in KwaZulu-Natal, we have created a legally protected habitat where giraffe have been reintroduced. Check out our hopeful video below of the release of Daisy, Ndzilo, JJ, Burly, Magic, and Ithemba, six of giraffe who were introduced in May 2018 and were named by donors who generously sponsored their introduction. Since the first release in 2017 and the release filmed below, we have seen their “journey” grow to 18 individuals. Seeing new giraffe born to our land that has been restored and re-wilded, is our greatest joy. These individual calves represent hope for the future. If habitat for giraffe is protected from poaching and development, restored, and habitat reconnected - their populations will rebound. We can move from a silent extinction to hopeful rewilding.

HOW CAN I HELP GIRAFFE

Join us in our mission to protect and restore wild places. You can help directly by donating to help rangers and conservationists in the field. They are the boots on the ground who are working tirelessly to protect and defend Africa's wildlife and the habitats that are so important to their survival. Donate to help protect giraffe and other species below.