Asked by: Juno Sandford (aged 5), Hackney
Although not the most talkative of animals, giraffes are known to snort or hiss when threatened, and female giraffes bellow to their young. But we recently discovered that they make other noises, too.
In 2015, researchers analysed recordings of giraffes from zoos in Berlin, Copenhagen and Vienna, and found that they make low-frequency humming noises at night. It’s thought that these otherworldly sounds are a form of ‘contact call’ between individuals who have been separated from their herd, helping them to find each other in the dark. Rather charmingly, another theory suggests that the humming is actually giraffes snoring or sleep-talking!
Read more:
- Why do giraffes have such long necks?
- Why do giraffes have purple tongues?
- Why do we talk in our sleep?
- Do more men snore than women?
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