Eliza Mourgos, age 10, of San Bruno, California, for her question:

What do giraffes eat?

On the flat wetlands of Africa, the sturdy grasses change with the changing seasons. There are shrubs and prickly bushes and acacia trees, growing alone and in clusters. This is the giraffe’s native home    and he is a strict vegetarian. He cannot, however, graze on the grasses because his front legs are too long. In order to reach his head down to ground level, he must straddle. This tends to unbalance him and reduce his chances to escape his enemies, the big cats. For this reason, he must dine from a high table, so to speak.

He can and does bend down his neck to munch the bushes, thorns and all. But his favorite food is provided by the acacia trees. Its wide branches hold aloft a flat table top of foliage. The giraffe eats the grey green leaves and also munches the prickly twigs. A grove of acacia trees also provides him with a hiding place. It conceals him from lions. As a rule he is tall enough to see over the top or peek through the boughs. He can see without being seen.