Giraffe up to , and can sustain for several kilometres. A giraffe rests by lying with its body on top of its folded legs. To lie down, the animal kneels on its front legs and then lowers the rest of its body. To get back up, it first gets on its knees and spreads its hind legs to raise its hindquarters. It then straightens its front legs. With each step, the animal swings its head. In captivity, the giraffe sleeps intermittently around 4.6 hours per day, mostly at night. It usually sleeps lying down, however, standing sleeps have been recorded, particularly
West African giraffe giraffe" are now known to be the Kordofan giraffe ("G. c. antiquorum"). Older studies on giraffe subspecies have caused some researchers to question the separate status of "G. c. peralta" and the Kordofan giraffe ("G. c. antiquorum"). Genetic testing published in 2007 confirmed the distinctiveness of the West African giraffe. Most captive giraffes from northwestern Africa are in French zoological parks, a result of the history of French colonialism in what was French West Africa. Those giraffes were formerly treated as "G. c. peralta". However, since genetic analysis revealed that only giraffes to the west of Lake Chad belong to