Taylor Lee
September 9th, 2016
Dr. Pilger
Bio 101
Title: DNA Reveals Giraffes are 4 Species – Not 1
Author: Chris Woolston
Source:
http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/dna-reveals-giraffes-are-4-species-not-1/
This article discusses the new findings of the four different giraffe species. Axel Janke, a
geneticist at Goethe University in Frankfurt, Germany, and the study’s senior author, found
that there was not just one species of giraffes, but four and that this was found through a
study of their genetic makeup. The study looked at the distribution of seven specific
genetic sequences. These were picked in order to measure genetic diversity. When the
researchers looked at the giraffe’s mitochondrial DNA, “the sequences fell into four
distinct patters that strongly suggested a separate species.” (Scientific American. 2016).
Janke then goes on to say that the four species are more different than previously thought
and are all incredibly unique from one another. The article then continues on to discuss
conservation of the giraffes. The giraffes have been decreasing in size dramatically since
the 1990’s. There were over 140,000 giraffes in the 1990’s, and now there are fewer than
90,000. This discovery of the four different giraffe species is assumed to be of assistance to
the conservation of the giraffes. However, in previous studies it was shown that the genetic
revelation of a species does very little to help the conservation of that species, but they
have high hopes for the giraffes due to the newfound appreciation of the animal.
