一只马赛长颈鹿，肯尼亚马赛马拉国家保护区 Masai giraffe in Maasai Mara, Kenya (© Andy Rouse/Minden Pictures)

一只马赛长颈鹿，肯尼亚马赛马拉国家保护区 Masai giraffe in Maasai Mara, Kenya (© Andy Rouse/Minden Pictures)

独自在草原上 Solo on the savannah

A giraffe in Maasai Mara, Kenya

Our lonely giant is silhouetted on the Maasai Mara, or just 'The Mara' to locals. It's a large national game reserve in Kenya, and one of the world's most important wildlife conservation areas. The preserve was established in 1961 and is contiguous with the Serengeti National Park in Tanzania—together, the Mara-Serengeti ecosystem, protects some 9,700 square miles. In addition to our friend the giraffe, the Maasai Mara is home to large populations of elephants, lions, cheetahs, rhinos, wildebeest, hippos, crocodiles, zebras, and many more creatures.

While some zoologists consider the Masai giraffe its own species, most authorities recognize just one species of giraffe with nine subspecies. Masai giraffes like this one are the tallest of those, with males reaching heights of more than 18 feet. They range from southern Kenya, south through the Serengeti, and through all of Tanzania. Though not considered endangered by the Union for Conservation of Nature, all giraffes are a 'vulnerable' species, and some of the subspecies may be nearly extinct.

Until the late 19th century, giraffes were commonly known as cameleopards, due to the mistaken belief that a giraffe was a cross between a camel and leopard. But if you've ever tried to get a camel and a leopard to even go on a first date, you'd know how unlikely this is.

肯尼亚马赛马拉的长颈鹿

我们孤独的巨人的剪影出现在马赛马拉岛上，对当地人来说就是“马拉岛”。它是肯尼亚的一个大型国家野生动物保护区，也是世界上最重要的野生动物保护区之一。该保护区成立于1961年，与坦桑尼亚的塞伦盖蒂国家公园相连。马拉塞伦盖蒂生态系统保护着约9700平方英里的土地。除了我们的朋友长颈鹿，马赛马拉岛是大象、狮子、猎豹、犀牛、角马、河马、鳄鱼、斑马和更多生物的家园。

虽然一些动物学家认为马赛长颈鹿是自己的物种，但大多数权威机构只承认一种长颈鹿，有九个亚种。像这样的马赛长颈鹿是其中最高的，雄性长颈鹿的身高超过18英尺。从肯尼亚南部到塞伦盖蒂，再到坦桑尼亚全境。虽然没有被自然保护联盟认为濒危，但所有长颈鹿都是“脆弱”物种，其中一些亚种可能已经濒临灭绝。

直到19世纪末，长颈鹿通常被称为驼鹿，因为人们错误地认为长颈鹿是骆驼和豹子的杂交。但如果你试过让骆驼和豹子第一次约会，你就会知道这是多么不可能。