Thornicroft's giraffe

Thornicroft's giraffe
Thornicroft's giraffe in Mfuwe, Zambia
Scientific classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Artiodactyla
Family: Giraffidae
Genus: Giraffa
Species:
Subspecies:
G. c. thornicrofti
Trinomial name
Giraffa camelopardalis thornicrofti
Lydekker, 1911
Range in purple
Synonyms

G. thornicrofti
G. tippelskirchi thornicrofti

Thornicroft's giraffe (Giraffa camelopardalis thornicrofti), also known as the Rhodesian giraffe or Luangwa giraffe, is a subspecies of giraffe. It is sometimes considered a species in its own right (as Giraffa thornicrofti) or a subspecies of the Masai giraffe (as Giraffa tippelskirchi thornicrofti). It is geographically isolated, occurring only in Zambia’s South Luangwa Valley. An estimated 550 live in the wild, with no captive populations. Its lifespan is 22 years for males and 28 years for females. The ecotype was originally named after Harry Scott Thornicroft, a commissioner in what was then North-Eastern Rhodesia and later Northern Rhodesia.