How much does the adult giraffe heart weigh?

The giraffe's chief distinguishing characteristics are its extremely long neck and legs, its horn-like ossicones, and its distinctive coat patterns. Its scattered range extends from Chad in the north to South Africa in the south, and from Niger in the west to Somalia in the east. Giraffes usually inhabit savannahs and woodlands. Their food source is leaves, fruits and flowers of woody plants, primarily acacia species, which they browse at heights most other herbivores cannot reach. They may be preyed on by lions, leopards, spotted hyenas and African wild dogs.

The circulatory system of the giraffe has several adaptations for its great height. Its heart, which can weigh more than 11 kg (25 lb) and measures about 60 cm (2 ft) long, must generate approximately double the blood pressure required for a human to maintain blood flow to the brain. As such, the wall of the heart can be as thick as 7.5 cm (3.0 in). Giraffes have unusually high heart rates for their size, at 150 beats per minute.

The giraffe is a protected species in most of its range. It is the national animal of Tanzania, and is protected by law. Unauthorized killing can result in imprisonment. In 1999, it was estimated that over 140,000 giraffes existed in the wild, estimations as of 2016 indicate that there are approximately 97,500 members of Giraffa in the wild, down from 155,000 in 1985, with around 1,144 in captivity.