HIDE AND SEEK: HOW GIRAFFES USE THEIR SPOTS TO REMAIN HIDDEN

From the tallest giraffe to the smallest bumble bee, there is an awe-inspiring spectrum of coat colour and pattern across the animal kingdom. However, it can be easy to think of a species, like the zebra for example, to be simply striped and each one look almost the same. What we fail to see without close inspection is the huge complexity and variability in these coat patterns.

This variation has been thought to play a major role in an animals’ chances of survival. It allows the avoidance of predators and parasites, regulation of body temperature and even allows individuals of the same species to recognise each other and therefore communicate. Despite it’s importance to the study of evolution little is known about the impacts of coat colouration on individual survival and species survival as a whole.

However, a recent study on Masai giraffes conducted by Dr Derek E. Lee and…