Not only are giraffes the tallest animals in the world, they are also one of the most recognizable. Their distinctive long necks quickly captivate any audience. That said, it is not commonly known that there are thought to be nine subspecies of Giraffa camelopardalis. Indeed, there is growing evidence that these could potentially be separate species in their own right. This article will discuss where giraffes fit on the Tree of Life and identify the giraffe's closest relatives, differentiate and analyze the similarities and differences among the nine subspecies, and finally explore any debates revolving around the phylogeny of the subspecies. The complete scientific classification of the giraffe is Animalia Chordata Mammalia Artiodactyla Ruminantia Pecora Giraffidea Giraffa camelopardalis. There were once seven species of the Giraffa genus, but today only one exists: camelopardalis, (Mitchell and Skinner, 2010). Since the modern giraffe has no other extant species within its genus, it is useful to look at the phylogenetic tree from a broader perspective. Going beyond the genus level, giraffes belong to the Giraffidea family. This family, however, is very small, as it contains only two different extant genera: Giraffa and Okapia, (Lerner and Lerner, 2008) Okapia, or okapi, represents the closest living relative to the giraffe, and the two are very similar both morphologically and molecular. The two animals can trace their ancestry from the 20-25 million year old “gelocidae ancestral assemblage” to the Palaeomeridae family. From the paleomericids came the Antilocaprinae of the subfamily Dromomerycinae, and two subfamilies of giraffids, the Climacoceratidae and the Canthumerycidae. (...... middle of paper ...... Giraffa camelopardalis. Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London 74:202-229 Hassanin, A. et all, 2007. Mitochondrial DNA variability in Giraffa camelopardalis: consequences for the taxonomy, phylogeography and conservation of giraffes in central and western Africa. Comptes Rendus Biologies 330:265-274Lerner, E. and Lerner, B., 2008. Giraffes and okapi. J., On the origin, evolution and phylogeny of giraffes Giraffacamelopardalis Society of South Africa 58:51-73Cope, E., 1888, The Artiodactyl. The American Naturalist 264:1079-1095 Baxter, K., 1962., Energy metabolism. of ruminants p 326. Hutchinson, London.Giraffe Conservation Foundation, 2014. Giraffa subspecies.http://www.giraffeconservation.org/. giraffe_facts.php?pgid=6, retrieved April 12, 2014.