title: The Brain of the Giraffe (Giraffa Camelopardalis): Surface Configuration, Encephalization Quotient, and Analysis of the Existing Literature.
abstract: The anatomy of the giraffe (Giraffa camelopardalis Linnaeus, 1758) has been poorly studied, except for the circulatory system. In particular, only a handful of studies have concerned the brain of this species since the first description in 1839. Accordingly, only a very few articles discussing encephalization mentioned the giraffe or used it in their calculations. In this article, we performed a thorough examination of the literature including old and grey, regarding the central nervous system of the giraffe. Furthermore, we examined the brain of 3 giraffes, and calculated the encephalization quotient (EQ) of the species, based on our own data and the values found in the literature. We also revised the pre-existing literature and re-mapped the main sulci based on current comparative interpretation and anatomical nomenclature. Our results were compared to those of other selected significant mammals. The mean brain weight was of 719.9 ± 12.5 g. Our data indicate that the EQ of the giraffe is 0.64 and matches that of the typical ungulate, despite having the largest brain among terrestrial Cetartiodactyla. This emphasizes that the giraffe is a highly specialized mammal, within the limitations of its clad. Anat Rec, 300:1502-1511, 2017. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
authors.affiliation: Department of Comparative Biomedicine and Food Science, University of Padova, viale dell'Università 16, Legnaro (PD), 35020, Italy.
authors.forename: Jean-Marie
authors.identifier: 0000-0002-1974-8356
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Graïc
authors.affiliation: Department of Comparative Biomedicine and Food Science, University of Padova, viale dell'Università 16, Legnaro (PD), 35020, Italy.
authors.forename: Antonella
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Peruffo
authors.affiliation: Department of Comparative Biomedicine and Food Science, University of Padova, viale dell'Università 16, Legnaro (PD), 35020, Italy.
authors.forename: Cristina
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Ballarin
authors.affiliation: Department of Comparative Biomedicine and Food Science, University of Padova, viale dell'Università 16, Legnaro (PD), 35020, Italy.
authors.forename: Bruno
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Cozzi
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001921:Brain / Q000033:anatomy & histology* / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D000068276:Giraffes / Q000033:anatomy & histology* / Q000502:physiology*; D008297:Male; D009445:Neuroanatomy; D012196:Review Literature as Topic
keywords: EQ; Giraffe; brain; encephalization; neuroanatomy