{"id":2401,"date":"2025-06-21T13:02:18","date_gmt":"2025-06-21T13:02:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/2401\/"},"modified":"2025-06-21T13:02:18","modified_gmt":"2025-06-21T13:02:18","slug":"fantastic-news-giraffes-are-making-a-comeback-new-report-reveals-which-species-are-on-the-rise","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/2401\/","title":{"rendered":"“Fantastic news”: giraffes are making a comeback \u2013 new report reveals which species are on the rise"},"content":{"rendered":"

Giraffes appear to be making a comeback in Africa, with populations of three of the four species on the rise.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

Despite ongoing threats, including habitat loss, the latest data compiled for Giraffe Conservation Foundation\u2019s (GCF)\u00a0State of Giraffe 2025\u00a0report found that numbers of\u00a0northern giraffe,\u00a0reticulated giraffe\u00a0and\u00a0southern giraffe are increasing, with more positive news that\u00a0Masai giraffe\u00a0numbers are stabilising.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen we started with the analysis, we were super-excited to see these positive trends, especially in today\u2019s world, where there\u2019s so much doom and gloom,\u201d says Stephanie Fennessy, Executive Director of GCF. \u201cIncreasing and stable giraffe numbers is clearly fantastic news.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"MasaiMasai giraffes in Tanzania. Credit: GCF & Bobby-Jo Photography
\nCounting giraffes<\/p>\n

Working with partners in Africa and internationally, the GCF team collated the\u00a0latest population numbers\u00a0and an\u00a0updated distribution map\u00a0for giraffe<\/a> by compiling data from ground and aerial surveys over the last 12 months, as well as through interviews and questionnaires, camera trap data and other methods.<\/p>\n

The positive trends are believed to be a direct result of effective conservation activity, research and growing global awareness about giraffes, who have been suffering what many have called a \u2018silent extinction\u2019, with previously plummeting numbers – giraffe populations have declined by up to 95% in some areas. <\/p>\n

\"SouthernSouthern giraffe in Namibia. Credit: GCF
\nWhy are giraffe number increasing?<\/p>\n

\u201cDeveloping the first-ever National and Regional Giraffe Conservation Strategies and Action Plans and supporting their implementation has proven a successful strategy for GCF in protecting all four species of giraffe,\u201d Fennessy explains. <\/p>\n

“By bringing all interested parties together, identifying key threats and deciding collaboratively on a way forward, we see positive results. Giraffe can only be saved in Africa by the people who share their\u00a0space with them.\u00a0<\/p>\n

“Habitat loss and fragmentation are two of the main threats to giraffe. These are not easy threats to address, but concerted community-based and private land conservation efforts, in combination with awareness-raising and targeted translocations, help to alleviate these. <\/p>\n

“Improving our understanding of giraffe distribution, numbers and movement, and making this information accessible to all relevant parties is another key factor in our approach.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Giraffe numbers: species by species<\/p>\n

Southern giraffe, found across southern Africa, showed the most remarkable growth, with an estimated\u00a068,837 individuals\u00a0in the wild currently, a\u00a050% increase\u00a0in just five years, largely due to improved survey coverage and increased awareness.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Reticulated giraffe\u00a0are estimated at\u00a020,901 individuals, an apparent increase, though reliable data\u2019s difficult due to security issues in north-east Kenya and limited access in parts of Ethiopia and Somalia.<\/p>\n

\"ReticulatedReticulated giraffe. Credit: GCF & Billy Dodson<\/p>\n

With only 7,037 individuals, the northern giraffe\u00a0remains one of the world\u2019s most threatened large mammals. But a 19% increase\u00a0since 2020 offers hope amidst ongoing insecurity within its range.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Masai giraffe\u00a0numbers have stabilised across Kenya (estimated at\u00a043,926), and continue to\u00a0\u00a0grow steadily in Rwanda, with Zambia\u2019s Luangwa giraffe (a subspecies of\u00a0Masai) also expanding in range and number.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhile these trends are very positive, it\u2019s important to point out that we have also got better at counting giraffe,\u201d Fennessy notes. \u201cOld estimates were often data-deficient, so these new numbers should be considered a new baseline for giraffe in Africa.\u201d<\/p>\n

GCF is set to launch a\u00a0Giraffe Africa Database (GAD), a centralised platform for monitoring giraffe populations across the continent.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"StateState of Giraffe 2025 range map. Credit: GCF
\nWhat’s next?<\/p>\n

The observed positive trends provide hope but giraffes continue to face serious challenges. \u201cOur science-based approach to giraffe conservation is clearly working and we\u2019re on the right trajectory,\u201d says Fennessy. <\/p>\n

\u201cThat doesn\u2019t mean that all the work is now done – quite the opposite. We\u2019ll continue to work with all partners on implementing the best strategies, including but not limited to reclaiming giraffe habitat through conservation translocations, helping to manage and conserve key habitats, continue monitoring all giraffe species, and importantly understanding and supporting local communities and other partners to\u00a0ensure such giraffe successes are long-term.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"MoonMoon giraffe. Credit: GCF & Anani Thomas<\/p>\n

Top image credit: GCF & Anani Thomas<\/p>\n

More wildlife stories from around the world<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Giraffes appear to be making a comeback in Africa, with populations of three of the four species on…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":2402,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[27],"tags":[159,67,132,68,837],"class_list":{"0":"post-2401","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-wildlife","8":"tag-science","9":"tag-united-states","10":"tag-unitedstates","11":"tag-us","12":"tag-wildlife"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/114721491987806301","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2401","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2401"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2401\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2402"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2401"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2401"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2401"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}