They are gentle and docile creatures. When pursued they seek safety in flight, but when cornered these huge, awkward fellows can let go a shower of kicks from their nimble heels that will beat back even the foolhardiest pursuers.
They travel in small herds of from five to thirty animals. Their hearing is very acute and their eyes of a beautiful brightness, are wide set and command a very wide angle of vision. The small head, planted on the long, towering, slim neck, which acts as an observatory, makes it very difficult to approach them.
The giraffe is the tallest of quadrupeds. It is a native of Africa, formerly found from India to the Cape of Good Hope. Never abundant, they are now almost extinct south of the Zambesi river. They feed on small twigs and leaves of trees, their favourite food being the leaves of the Mimosa tree. Their characteristic features are: Extremely long neck, little head, surmounted by skin-covered horns, tipped with bristles; long upper lip, great height of fore parts, body short and sloping to the lower hindquarters, finished by a long, thin tail that hangs nearly to the
