There is ongoing debate in the taxonomy of the giraffe; taxonomy is the scientific classification of organisms. In 1758, Swedish botanist and zoologist Carl Linnaeus placed all extant giraffes within one species and labeled them as Cervus camelopardalis. Giraffes form two distinct groups; northern giraffes have three “horns” and southern giraffes have two. Four subspecies are proposed for the northern giraffe; the Nubian, Kordofan, Rothschild’s, and the West African giraffe. Four subspecies are also considered for the southern variety; the Angolan, South African, Masai, and Thornicroft’s giraffe. The reticulated giraffe, having three horns, is considered as a separate subspecies not related to either northern or southern variety. The color and shape of the polygonal markings are one item used to separate each group. Less than 100,000 giraffes of all varieties are estimated to be living in the wild.
