By Taylor D. and Brianna

                                     

There are five different groups of animals with vertebrates.

Mammals

Reptiles

Amphibians

Birds

Fish

Most mammals:

are warm blooded

have hair or fur

give birth to live young

feed their babies with mother’s milk

breathe through lungs

The panda and giraffe are both mammals.

These mammals are both plant eaters.

A giraffe is the world’s tallest land animal. He has a long neck so he can eat leaves from trees. tree leaves, and grasslands. He has the same number of bones in his neck as humans do. (Seven bones)

Giraffe

A giraffe can go for days without water. In order to drink water, the giraffe has to spread its front legs and bend its long neck to the water. Giraffes live in herds in African.

GiraffesThe giraffes front legs are slightly longer then the rear legs. A baby giraffe weighs about 130 pounds at birth and is about 6 feet tall. Giraffes are plant eaters, eating mostly leaves, twigs and bark from the tops of the thorny acacia plant. The giraffes carefully eat around the thorns, and their tough lips and thick saliva protect them somewhat from the thorns.

A Giraffe eats from tall trees and it has a short mane so when it is cold he is ready for it.

GiraffesInside a giraffe’s neck there are seven bones. These bones and a giraffe’s backbone are its vertebrate. Like most hoofed mammals, giraffe’s eat plants. The giraffe uses its upper lip and long tongue to strip the leaves from the tree.

Labeled Giraffe

Giant Panda Labeled

Pandas

Pandas grow to be about 250 pounds. They eat bamboo for 12 to 16 hours every day. They have strong teeth and jaws to help them chew the food.

Panda

Pandas have thick, oily, woolly fur that keeps them warm in their cold, damp place where they live in China. Their fur is waterproof.

Pandas

They have their cubs in dens that they dig in the ground.

One or two cubs are born but usually only one survives.

Giraffe and panda

We hope you had a great time learning about a giraffe and a panda.