Matching Giraffes

Particular patterns of spots passed down from female giraffes to their offspring may play an important role in helping to keep calves safe in the wild. Scientists are working to understand how inheriting similar shapes and patterns of spots from their mothers could increase young giraffes chances of survival. It appears those beautiful markings, which also serve as camouflage from predators, may not be random after all—apparently, the larger and more irregular the spots the better. When it comes to giraffe survival in the savanna, it seems there’s no such thing as being too matchy-matchy.