On Wed, May 20, 2009 at 4:12 PM, Dave Long <dave.l...@bluewin.ch> wrote: > > For a grazing animal, having a longer neck than legs would only make > balancing while running a little more complex, but having a shorter neck > than legs would make eating -- an activity that occupies most of the day -- > very very difficult. >
If you notice the giraffe is primarily a savannah animal ... where the grass is tall. (forest giraffe varieties like the okapi have large bodies like the giraffe but short necks) having a long neck provides a specialized advantage of vision from a higher vantage point (perhaps to compensate for the inability to run at high speeds like an antelope) / and also to feed on greenery not accessible to other grazers. The head is also used like a weapon - the height allows a sledgehammer like action... on more than one occasion i have heard of people being killed by a giraffe in that manner.
