#Kipekee the Giraffe

[elijones94]

🦒 The spotless giraffe 🦒

https://brightszoo.com/rare-patternless-giraffe/

https://www.today.com/today/amp/rcna101041

[mattapparentlystumbltourneys]

Giraffe Girumble - Loser's Bracket 5B

Propaganda below (Spoilers every other week)

I'm a Giraffe guy Propaganda:

They did say they were a giraffe, soooooooo

From the vine in which a skiier in a giraffe suit skis past the camera and shouts "I'm a giraffe!" Clearly a giraffe

Imagine if you will, a ski trip to Colorado with friends. You stop to take a photo to remember the occasion. Your friend tells you say to Colorado and before you can speak, a man in a giraffe onesie on skis zips by yelling three words. “I’m a giraffe!” And disappears without a trace. I’m Rod Serling, and welcome to the Twilight Zone.

Satoshi Nagashima propaganda:

A student who runs a radio show/podcast in which he shares the broadcasts of a listening device. In the show proper, he's a background character and a critic of a comedy duo known as the 'Homosapiens'.

Kipekee propaganda:

It's a spotless giraffe which is very cool and p rare. I still think it should've been named vibrant beige tho. :)

[moonygryffin]

Visited the baby yesterday. Gettin big

[xtruss]

A Spotless Giraffe, Pictured in Namibia 🇳🇦, was seen and photographed for the first time in the wild just weeks after another animal with this type of coloring was born at a U.S. 🇺🇸 Zoo. Photograph By Eckart Demasius and Giraffe Conservation Foundation

Another Rare Spotless Giraffe Found—the First Ever Seen in the Wild

The sighting occurred just weeks after the unusual condition was seen in a newborn giraffe at a Tennessee zoo. Is it more common than scientists thought?

— By Dina Fine Maron | September 12, 2023

Just weeks after a giraffe at a U.S. Zoo was born missing its characteristic spots, another spotless giraffe calf has now been seen and photographed in the wild for the first time.

The unprecedented sighting occurred at Mount Etjo Safari Lodge, a private game reserve in central Namibia. Tour guide Eckart Demasius saw and photographed the solid-brown calf during a game drive on the roughly 90,000-acre reserve, according to the Giraffe Conservation Foundation. Demasius, who was not immediately available for comment, shared his photos with the giraffe nonprofit.

Sara Ferguson, a wildlife veterinarian and conservation health coordinator at the foundation, says the two recent spotless sightings are pure coincidence and that there’s no data to suggest this coloring is occurring more frequently than it had in the past.

This finding is just another example of “the weird way the world works” she says, adding that she’s “so amazed and pleased there is so much more to learn and discover about giraffe.”

Genetic Anomalies

The spotless reticulated giraffe born at Brights Zoo in Limestone, Tennessee, earlier this summer was recently named Kipekee, which means “Unique” in Swahili. The recent wild sighting occurred in another giraffe subspecies found in southern Africa, the Angolan giraffe.

Before these recent births, a giraffe with all-brown coloring was last seen at a Tokyo Zoo in 1972.

The spotless giraffe and its mother were photographed on a reserve with around 800 giraffes in central Namibia 🇳🇦. Photograph By Eckart Demasius and Giraffe Conservation Foundation

Scientists, including Ferguson, believe the solid coloring is likely due to one or more genetic mutations that haven’t yet been identified.

Some aspects of giraffe spots are passed down from mother to calf, according to a 2018 study in the Journal Peer J, and larger, rounder spots appear to be linked to higher survival rates for younger giraffes, but the reasons for that remain unclear.

Derek Lee, a Biology Professor at Penn State University and a co-author on the PeerJ Study, says that technically these two recent examples are not spotless animals, but instead —"one-spot-all-over giraffes."

It’s impossible to say what this genetic anomaly means for the animal’s health, he says, but there’s no evidence the color difference puts the animal at a disadvantage.

“We have a sample size here of one, so time will tell what happens.”

[headlinehorizon]

Kipekee: The Spotless Giraffe Shines in Brights Zoo

Discover the incredible story of Kipekee, the only known solid-colored reticulated giraffe in the world. Get the latest news on this captivating creature making headlines at the renowned Brights Zoo.

[reputayswift]

Kipekee the spotless giraffe just celebrated her 1st birthday and she’s still spotless btw. if you care.

[keepcalmandcarriefischer]

I AM SURE YOU HAVE ALL SEEN THIS ALREADY RIGHT?

The little newborn giraffe that doesn't have any spots. A one of a kind miracle baby. You know what it's name is?

It doesn't have one yet. You have to vote between 4 choices on their Facebook page

So what name should win??

[in-sufficientdata]

“Giraffe experts believe she is the only solid-colored reticulated giraffe living anywhere on the planet,” Brights Zoo stated in a release.

Zoo leaders say there are records of another giraffe without spots being born in Japan in the 1970s.

“From day one we’ve been in contact with zoo professionals all over the country,” said Brights Zoo director, David Bright. “And especially the old timers, that have been around for a long time, ‘Hey, have you seen this? What’s your thoughts?’ And nobody’s seen it.”

Bright’s Zoo is asking for the public’s help in narrowing down the four chosen names for the unnamed baby giraffe.

Kipekee – Unique

Firyali – Unusual or Extradonary

Shakiri – She is most beautiful

Jamella – One of great beauty

David Bright said the names will be up on the zoo’s Facebook page Tuesday. Voting will last for two weeks.

[thepastisalreadywritten]

The spotless giraffe, born at a Tennessee zoo, is the first one seen in more than 50 years.

By Dina Fine Maron

24 August 2023

Just a few weeks old and still without a name, a newborn giraffe at a zoo in northeastern Tennessee could rightly be nicknamed “spotless.”

The female giraffe born without its characteristic spots instead boasts a solid brown coat, a phenomenon that hasn’t been observed in any giraffe for more than 50 years.

She was born last month at Brights Zoo, a family-owned facility in Limestone, Tennessee.

A spotless giraffe was last reported at a Tokyo zoo in 1972.

“The spotless giraffe calf is certainly an interesting case and that type of coloring has never been seen in the wild," says Sara Ferguson, a wildlife veterinarian and conservation health coordinator at the Giraffe Conservation Foundation.

The animal’s rare coloring is likely due to some sort of mutation in one or more genes, she says.

But there’s no indication of underlying medical issues or that the newborn reticulated giraffe — a subspecies native to eastern Africa — is at a genetic disadvantage.

David Bright, zoo director at the Brights Zoo, says that the baby’s nine-year-old mother, Shenna, had previously birthed three other calves and the trio were all spotted.

This latest addition to the zoo’s giraffe family was born at a weight of around 190 pounds, he says, and her veterinary care team concluded “she’s healthy and normal” — though her coloring was a surprise.

A case of spotlessness

Genetics often influence animal coloring in diverse ways.

Giraffes with all white coloring have previously been spotted in the wild, including two at a reserve in Kenya in 2017.

Those animals had a genetic condition called leucism, which blocks skin cells from producing pigments.

"There’s no known explanation for the spotless giraffe in Tennessee beyond that it’s almost certainly due to some kind of genetic mutation or mutations," says Fred Bercovitch, a wildlife conservation biologist at the Anne Innis Dagg Foundation, a nonprofit that focuses on giraffe conservation.

The last known case of a spotless giraffe was an animal named Toshiko born in 1972 at Ueno Zoo in Tokyo, Japan, CBS News reported.

That giraffe’s mother had birthed another spotless calf several years earlier, according to Bright.

The Brights Zoo, which is home to just over 700 animals of 126 different species, including nine giraffes, asked the public to vote on four potential names for the giraffe calf on its Facebook page.

It accrued over 17,000 votes in the first day, Bright says.

There are four candidate names, all in Swahili: Kipekee (unique), Firyali (extraordinary or unusual), Shakiri (she is most beautiful), and Jamelia (one of great beauty).

What’s in a spot?

A 2018 study published in the journal PeerJ found that certain aspects of giraffe spots are passed down from mother to calf, such as how round the spots are and their smoothness (which is technically referred to as “tortuousness”).

The study authors also noted that bigger, rounder spots seemed linked to higher survival rates for young giraffes.

Still unanswered, however, was if that was possibly due to better camouflage or other unknown factors like enhanced ability to regulate temperature.

Bercovitch, who wasn’t involved in that study, says he wouldn’t be concerned about the spotless giraffe’s health even if the giraffe was born in the wild and away from a zoo’s medical care.

“Among mammals, the fur and the hair are the primary features that assist in thermoregulation, not the color of the fur,” he says.

“Giraffes can regularly raise their body temperature by a few degrees … they don’t sweat,” he says.

“That’s one of the reasons you find giraffes under trees—they want to keep their body temperatures within certain limits.”

Even the lack of camouflage wouldn’t necessarily mean the giraffe would be at a disadvantage in the wild, he says, since the mortality rate for young giraffes from lion predation is already so high.

Ferguson, the wildlife veterinarian says she looks forward to hearing more about the giraffe in the years to come.

“What would be cool,” she says, “would be to take an infrared light photo or a thermograph of her to see if the spot pattern is still there but invisible to our eye.”

🤎🦒🤎

[considerourknowledge]

Spotless Giraffe's Mother Has Some Explaining To Do

The rare baby giraffe that was born at the Brights Zoo in Tennessee without any spots and has taken the world by storm now has a name: Kipekee. The moniker, which means "unique" in Swahili, was revealed Tuesday morning on the Today show. According to the zoo, giraffe experts believe Kipekee is the only solid-color reticulated giraffe living anywhere in the world, which begs the question how could this happen? Kipekee's mother surely has some explaining to do since Kipekee's father has spots, and she was seen hanging around and possibly flirting with several unspotted animals at the zoo, including a llama named Stig, a bear named Jumbo, and two lions. "We're not saying that Kipekee's mother is a tramp who doesn't know who her baby's real father is, but we're not not saying that either," zoo director, David Bright.

[highlifeboat]

Father the spotless giraffe in my state was named Kipekee

That's adorable and I love Kipekee.

[elijones94]

🦒 Kipekee, the rare spotless giraffe 🦒

[mattapparentlystumbltourneys]

Giraffe Girumble - Loser's Bracket 4D

Propaganda below (It sure is)

Kipekee propaganda:

It's a spotless giraffe which is very cool and p rare. I still think it should've been named vibrant beige tho. :)

Girafarig/Farigiraf propaganda:

(Girafarig) Surprisingly short for a giraffe, but the pushmi-pullyu design gimmick is charming enough to make up for that. Always thought this one was an underrated classic of Gold and Silver's roster, and I'm glad Scarlet and Violet gave it some deserved love and attention.

(Farigiraf) Both members of this family are good but farigiraf is as tall as arceus. It can square up to GOD

(Both) They're based on palindromes, and when Girafarig evolves it's tail become a cute hoodie. Also they used to have a pre-evolution that was a pair of ghost-like twins(dark/normal typed) attached to each other.

[moonygryffin]

Kipekee and her mom and siblings

[tigershaveeatenme]

They’ve named her! Kipekee which means Unique.

So fitting - they also just found another giraffe with no spots in the wild!

New weird horse just dropped, folks.

A spotless giraffe was recently born at Bright’s Zoo in Limestone, TN and was just announced in the media this morning. They’re starting a public naming contest for her, of course.

I’d love to know what type of mutation causes this lack of of pattern, but I don’t know if we have genetics on that for giraffes the way we do other species. As far as is known, she’s the first spotless giraffe ever documented!

[sherrystravels]

Thursday, 31 August 2023

After some initially optimistic plans for the day I realized my limitations, and Tracey and I set out for a more realistic journey to Brights Zoo in Telford, TN. The object of this visit had made international headlines: a recently born unspotted giraffe, the only of its kind.

Pay heed: On the Zoo website, you’re cautioned that your GPS will likely lead you astray. Trust this! As you drive along the Andrew Johnson highway, between Jonesborough and Greeneville, TN, watch for the Telford sign - when it appears, you are there. The Brights Zoo sign is obscurely located on your right.

Brights Zoo is family-owned and operated and home to an impressive number of rare and lovely species. Their habitats are equally impressive. It took us a little over two hours to traverse the spotless park route, and our sighting of the baby giraffe was so worth it.

Currently there is an online naming contest, and her final name will be determined by popular vote. It ends on 4 September (Labor Day), and I’m anxious to see if my favorite wins. I chose ‘Kipekee’ or Unusual.

It was midday and hot by the time we reached the giraffe area, and she had moved back to the shade. Siesta time! But I will try to share my best zoomed-in photo, as well as a better one from the Zoo website. Isn’t she gorgeous?

As we wanted to tick off another location on Tracey’s bucket list, we drove an hour to Bristol, TN, to the famous Blackbird Bakery. I wondered if Hermione could hold our loot!

After a stop at another favorite, Chick-Fil-A, we headed home to Lili. Mary had entertained Lili for us in her own surroundings, but she was overjoyed to see us. Lili believes that Tracey is her personal playmate.

Tomorrow will be another fun-filled day, as Ben and Nancy come for BBQ, and Jim and Molly drive from WV with Lili’s best buddy Frodo.

Now it’s time to rest! 😴