Two male giraffes will be gazing upon visitors tomorrow at the Central Florida Zoo for a celebration called "World Giraffe Day."
The Giraffe Conservation Foundation established the event to celebrate the conservation and awareness of all nine subspecies of giraffe.
Guests at the Central Florida Zoo can admire and feed Rafiki and Emba.
Rafiki is 2 years old and came from Lion Country Safari and Emba is 18 years old and came from White Oak conservation area near Jacksonville, according to the zoo's community resource manager Terri Clark.
The celebration Saturday will include games, face painting and a chance to feed the giraffe's at 3:00.
“Every zoo in the world is cooperating with World Giraffe Day,” Clark said.
The Central Florida Zoo is a non-profit conversation resource that teaches adults and children about the animals and how to act on behalf of wildlife.
While most giraffes are surviving well in the world, Clark said "some (subspecies) aren’t doing well at all. One species has only 250 left in the wild."
"We need to bring an awareness and save them,” she added.
Admission will be the same as a regular zoo day.. Adults: $14.95, Children $10.95 and Senior citizens $12.95. World Giraffe Day begins at 10:00 and ends at 3:00.
Here are some things New 96.5's Joe Ruble and Chloe Cleghorn learned about giraffes:
- A giraffe's legs and neck will always be almost exactly 6 feet tall
- A giraffe's tongue is 21-inches long and is black to prevent it from getting sunburned.
- While no two individuals have exactly the same pattern, giraffes from the same area tend to have similar spots.
- Rafiki and Emba are not bothered by the Sun Rail and other trains that pass directly behind the zoo.