[In Photos: See Cute Pics of Baby Giraffes]. An ancestor of the giraffe split into two evolutionary branches, one leading to the okapi with its short neck and the other branch leading to the giraffes. Credit: by Karl Tate, Infographics Artist. Researchers first discovered S. read more
In the early Miocene, about 20 million years ago, we have an ancestor distinct from other artiodactyls, Prolibytherium. Finally, between 5 and 3 million years ago, the first true Giraffes appear in the fossil record of north and east Africa: Giraffa stillei and jumae (alongside some Human ancestors). read more
Before delving into the past, a brief detour to the giraffe's closet living relative can shed some light on those ancestors. The okapi is the only other member of the giraffe family, Giraffidae. The okapi grows much smaller than the giraffe, and has a shorter neck. Only the males have ossicones, which grow smaller than a giraffe's. read more
Odd creature was ancient ancestor of today’s giraffes By Sid Perkins Nov. 24, 2015 , 7: 15 PM A distant relative of today’s giraffes was a bit of an odd creature: It was about the size of a bull moose, but it had a long neck that could stretch both up to eat tree leaves and down to eat grass. read more
Giraffa jumae was most likely the direct ancestor of the modern giraffe. G. jumae had a wider range than modern giraffes, extending from the modern giraffe's homeland in sub-Saharan Africa through the modern Middle East as far as Asia Minor. read more