[Online Zoo] Gentle Giants? The Interesting World of Giraffes You May Not Have Known About

Tigers, lions, bears, giraffes, pandas, foxes… These are some of the wild animals that live in Everland, the Land of Fantasy. Everland takes care of endangered animals by making sure that they are raised in an environment closest to their natural habitats and organizes a variety of ecological programs to help visitors learn about the importance of nature and all living things. To dive into the world of the mysterious world of animals, Samsung Global Newsroom has created its Online Zoo series by capturing the animals with various Samsung devices.

Today, June 21, is World Giraffe Day as designated by the Giraffe Conservation Foundation (GCF). This day was assigned to make collaborative efforts to prevent the extinction of giraffes, whose number is rapidly reducing, and to take some time to learn a bit more about these gentle giants. Considering the most characteristic feature of giraffes—their long necks—the GCF chose June 21 as World Giraffe Day as it is the summer solstice,¹ the longest day of the year.

Using some of Samsung Electronics’ most innovative devices, Samsung Global Newsroom followed the everyday lives of the twelve giraffes that live in Everland, from the story of the world record-breaking head of the giraffe family to the surprisingly belligerent nature of giraffes, and finally their charming yet subtle characteristics. Read on and take a look at the videos below to learn more about these gentle yet surprising creatures, and see if you can work out how the Galaxy S21 Ultra and The Sero TV made their way into the footage as you do.

The Most Famous Giraffe in South Korea

Giraffe matriarch Jang-Soon is living the life of a superstar who cannot escape the spotlight. Since making it into the Guinness Book of World Records for a special reason and becoming the most prominent giraffe in Everland, Jang-Soon’s conjugal harmony, silver wedding and other events have been reported on the news. The next giraffe to likely continue Jang-Soon’s legacy in the giraffe family has also come to the forefront. Who is this next contender for the leader of the superstar Everland giraffe family? Let’s find out by following a day in the life of Jang-Soon and her family.

Slow Yet Stealthy: the Hidden Abilities of Giraffes

“If you encounter a giraffe in the wild, don’t look back and run for your lives!” noted Jun-Yeong Park, Everland zookeeper who has been working with Lost Valley’s giraffe family for over 10 years. In fact, the giraffe is one of the top 10 strongest fighters among African land animals. ‘Cheong-Ryong’, the heaviest and strongest member of the giraffe family of twelve, in fact weighs 1.5 tons. If a giraffe harnesses its heavy body and starts kicking with full strength to defend itself, it is enough to break the skull or spine of a lion into pieces.

What’s more, their big eyes, each of which is the size of a tennis ball, grants them excellent eyesight and a visibility range of 4 to 7km, meaning that giraffes are very good at escaping from their enemies. Let’s learn more about some of the surprising physical characteristics of giraffes that are disguised behind their beatific eyes and relaxed gait.

The Longer the Neck, the Higher the Blood Pressure

One of a giraffe’s most characteristic features is its long neck, which is hard to see in one go even if you tilt your head as far as you can. Male giraffes engage in fights using their necks, known as ‘necking’, in order to compete for females, meaning that it is more advantageous to have a longer neck as it increases a fighter’s overall centrifugal force.

That said, as giraffes have to pump blood all the way to the top of their heads which sit 3m above their hearts, giraffes inevitably have high blood pressure, with their normal blood pressure being 270/180 mmHg. The blood pressure of the giraffe is two times that of the human, which is 120/80 mmHg, but nevertheless, giraffes manage to eat, drink, sleep and play with ease. So what is their secret?

Top Tips for Filming Giraffes

1) Harness Single Take for Those Funny Moments Featuring a Precocious Giraffe

When paying a visit to the zoo, it is difficult to predict when and where a giraffe might turn its head directly toward you for a picture, and you might end up with dozens of shaky or blurry photos taken in a failed attempt to capture that fleeting moment. This is when Single Take on the Galaxy S21 comes in handy. By filming up to fifteen seconds, you can then enjoy various media, including photos, videos, GIFs and hyperlapses, with just one shot. Single Take’s AI will also recommend you the best cuts, making it easy for you to capture and share the perfect giraffe moment.

2) Record 8k Videos on the Galaxy S21 for Those Subtle Yet Detailed Giraffe Features

Just as every person has a different appearance, every giraffe has a different pattern on its body. With the Galaxy S21 Ultra, you can clearly observe even the finest details, such as the unique patterns on a giraffe, as the device comes with a 108-megapixel camera. The resolution of videos can also be adjusted to up to 8K, which enables you to see even the most delicate textures of a giraffe’s fur. Another good way of observing a giraffe on the Galaxy S21 Ultra is using its Super Slow Mo mode when you witness a special sight, such as a giraffe lowering its head for drinking water or curling up its long neck to sleep.

3) Viewing a Giraffe from Head to Toe in One Go? Try The Sero

The giraffe is the tallest animal in the animal kingdom, boasting an average height of around 4.8 to 5.5m including its horns; even new-born calves can be as tall as 180cm. With its portrait mode that allows the user to rotate the landscape display to a vertical orientation, The Sero allows you to enjoy all your favorite content in portrait mode – just like watching it on your phone, but with the benefits of the big-screen experience. With The Sero, you can enjoy your vertically oriented giraffe videos and pictures in an entirely new way – just as giraffes were meant to be seen.

Giraffes that group with others live longer than less sociable individuals, according to the team of researchers led by Professor Barbara König at University of Zürich. World Giraffe Day was designated to promote collaborative efforts to the end of preventing the extinction of giraffes. After enjoying this dynamic tale of Everland’s giraffe family captured in the Galaxy S21 Ultra and The Sero, let’s be sure to pay more attention to protecting these gentle giants.

¹ One of the twenty-four solar terms, the summer solstice has the longest day and the shortest night of the year.