Chew On This!
Giraffes have a diet high in plant material, which is hard
to breakdown. Because of this,
giraffes have a special four-chamber stomach that allows them to breakdown the
tough plant material and allow them to obtain the nutrients from it. The four-chambered stomach has four
compartments: the rumen, reticulum, omasum and abomasum.
The first two chambers, the rumen and the reticulum, mix the chewed
up plant material with saliva, which is then separated into solid and liquid
waste. The solid waste forms a cud
that is regurgitated and then further broken down by the giraffe from chewing.
The job of the omasum is to absorb water and other nutrients into the blood
stream that were not absorbed in the rumen or reticulum. Once the food has been
chewed up again and further broken down by saliva in the mouth, it then moves
to the true stomach: the abomasum.
The abomasums breaks down the remaining food material in the same way
that our stomach breaks down our food as humans. From here, giraffe’s food is digested in the same way as
ours by moving through the small and large intestine where nutrients are
further absorbed. Although the
process of a four-chambered stomach is complex, it is essential for a giraffe
to obtain all of the possible nutrients out of its plant-based diet. The workings of a four-chambered
stomach allow the giraffe to do this in the best way possible.
Fun Fact of the Week!: A giraffe only sleeps for 1-12 minutes at a
time and usually gets about 30 minutes total in one day!
Bowen, R. "Digestive
Anatomy in Ruminants." Arbl.cvmbs.colostate.edu. 23 Nov. 2003. Web.
20 Apr. 2012.
<http://www.vivo.colostate.edu/hbooks/pathphys/digestion/herbivores/rumen_anat.html>.
"Mammals:
Giraffe." San Diego Zoo's Animal Bytes: Giraffe. Web. 20 Apr. 2012.
<http://www.sandiegozoo.org/animalbytes/t-giraffe.html>.
This is really interesting I never would have thought a giraffes stomach was so complex! I write for the wolf blog and discovered that a wolfs stomach can break down almost any plant or animal material but their stomachs aren't even close to being as interesting as this! I wonder why the giraffe stomach evolved this way (into four, more complex chambers) when it is focused mainly on consuming one thing, plants, where as the wolf stomach evolved in a more simple way to break down a much larger amount of materials. It would be interesting to find out!
ReplyDeleteThis is really cool! I wonder if this is something that evolved in order to survive in the harsh terrain. They must not get a lot of water or nutrients during the dry seasons. Isn't this kind of like cows? They have seven stomachs and all of them are used to break down the plants they eat. I wonder if this type of stomach is common in most animals that rely on plants for sustenance.
ReplyDeleteVery interesting! This reminds me a lot of cows because I know they have four chambers in their stomachs as well. Cows have microbes and other bacteria that help break down their food in the rumen, so I wonder if giraffes also have microbes that help them break down the plant material? And if so, I wonder if those microbes are similar and break down the same materials?
ReplyDeleteWe have a very smart and awesome God that created each species and gave each what they need to survive. Amazing wonderful creations of a wonderful God.
ReplyDelete