Giraffes
more speciose than expected
A study was recently conducted on the genetic makeup of a
giraffe. The conclusion was that instead of just being recognized as one
species, the results showed that giraffes have four distinct species. This analysis
was done using nuclear marker genes from over 100 animals. The results of this analysis
would be used to help protect the endangered animals in Africa.
While reading this article I learned a few things. One being
the giraffe hasn’t been studied much so we were just aware of one species
instead of four. Also knowing that there are four species of giraffes I found
it interesting how according to research they don’t mate with each other. I also
didn’t know that a giraffe had subspecies before them finding out they had in
fact four species. During the skin biopsy’s they were conducting a result
showed that two of the giraffe’s subspecies were basically identical, and that
the last ancestor they had in common lived from about 0.4 to 20 million years
ago. Lastly I learned that being given this information about giraffes they are
at a higher risk than before due to their three other species.
I thought this article was interesting because it was
different and as soon as I opened up the page the title caught my eye. Like the
article states it was known that giraffes were recognized as on instead of
four, was really fascinating. I had always just thought of it as just one
species. Also that this study could help not only the giraffes but other
animals that could be in danger.
http://www.biologynews.net/archives/2016/09/08/giraffes_more_speciose_than_expected.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+biologynews%2Fheadlines+%28Biology+News+Net%29
Are the different types of species able to mate and have fertile offspring? I know you mention they don't mate, but is it because they are at different regions or because their genitalia is different for the 4 species? AV
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
DeleteI did a little research on your question and found that different species do mate when they are in a zoo and they have hybrid offspring. In the wild it is different though and the university of California did a study on why they don't mate in the wild and some say that it is due to different seasons of rain which determine when the different species tend to have offspring. they also mentioned that it is possible that the different species recognize differences in other species coats which could also be a reason they don't mate in the wild.
DeleteJK
Interesting article! I wonder why more research hasn't been done into the different species of giraffes. CM
ReplyDeleteunder the topics we have discussed this last few chapter it definitely would seem like they are more than just one species especially if they wouldn't mate under normal circumstances. i wonder how they came across this scenario when they realized that they weren't mating with each other.
ReplyDeleteMC
I would be interested to hear what makes these four species different. You go over how similar they are but what are the big differences and what is the reason that they don't mate?
ReplyDeleteKI
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ReplyDeleteThis article is interesting because it makes you wonder about other animals like the giraffe we assume are one species and how many different species of animals there actually are. I understand that a species is a group of individuals who are similar and are able to interbreed and exchange genes. My question is, do you think that it is possible, evolutionary speaking, that in the future there will be different species of humans? I am asking because I am curious about humankind's evolutionary history.
ReplyDeleteMC
The fact that there are four distinct giraffe species, and no one knew this until genetic analysis was done, even though the different species of giraffes will not mate with each other, is surprising. It makes me wonder if breeding giraffes in captivity was a difficult ordeal, since zookeepers were unaware that there are different species that will not breed with one another. Did they just presume that the subspecies would not mate with each other, or did they have to place all the animals in one enclosure during mating season, and just wait and see which ones would mate? If they did in fact know that (what they thought were) the different subspecies wouldn’t breed with one another, why were they continuing to categorize them as one species?
ReplyDeleteCZ
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ReplyDeleteThis article is very interesting. It makes you wonder how many species of certain animals exist that we don't know about because they are so similar. I also wonder what differences these species have, and how the diversity can help the species thrive. SRH
ReplyDeleteWhat were some of the differences that help them recognize different species? I am very curious because of the fact that to me giraffes all look the same and there doesn't seem to be a lot of distinction. Do they tend to live in different parts of the world or are they in close proximity to each other?
ReplyDeleteAAH
I like this article because it can interest anybody. we all go to zoos and see the animals that are there and we all see the Giraffes! we normally don't think to much of their species and move on with our day. i like there there are four different species within the family but i find it very interesting why they don't mate with each other, they are currently " At risk " according to your review. i would think they would have them mate so that they would be able to continue to have them on the planet without them going extinct!
ReplyDelete-MM
In your article you address that the four subspecies of giraffes have a common ancestor, what is that common ancestor? Why do you think this common ancestor made four different species? Geographically giraffes are usually found living in the savannas of Africa so I don't see any reason to for different traits. How do scientist distinguish between their differences?
ReplyDeleteJH
It is interesting that it hasn't been determined sooner that there are more than just one species of giraffes. If you look at a map of Africa the giraffe is geographically spread out across areas of the continent. Geographically there is a barrier for each set of giraffes. Also they have some evidence of breeding the subspecies in zoos but no evidence of this occurring in the wild.
ReplyDeleteVery interesting post. Thanks for sharing.
RW
Thats very interesting how there is more than one specie of giraffe, out of the four, if they don't mate with one another do you think that maybe in a couple years there will only be three species left ?
ReplyDeleteRG
It is very interesting that there are in fact 4 different species of giraffes and that they do not mate with each other. It reminds me of the evolution we learned about recently in which is pre-zygotic differentiation that the giraffes don’t mate because, they are either in different regions, they have different mating habits, or they have different cycles of when they mate. –JA
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