Question

Choose the correct answer from the alternatives given
According to Lamarck the giraffe has a long neck because
A. God designed it that way
B. Catastrophes eliminated short-necked forms
C. Its ancestors stretched their neck to get food
D. Ancestral giraffes with slightly longer neck got more food than others and left more surviving offsprings

Answer 1

The long neck of the giraffe can reach more than 7 feet in length, meaning it makes up almost half of its total height. Giraffes have seven vertebrae in their necks, much like humans, except theirs may each be over 10 inches long, unlike ours.

Complete Answer:
- Some scientists claim that natural selection is simply a matter. By beating each other with their heads and necks, giraffes fight. This is known as "necking."
- Using their heavy skulls like clubs, male giraffes whip their necks around. The longer and thicker the neck, the more likely it is for a giraffe to win a battle. Giraffes who are good in battles are more likely to breed and bear offspring.
- Others think that long necks are a product of food competition. Giraffes share their habitat with many other species, many of them shorter. These shorter animals often need to feed at a height that might not even reach the knees of giraffes, snacking on plants and foliage.
- Lamarck claimed in the case of a giraffe that giraffes once had short necks that eventually became longer as members of each subsequent generation extended their necks as far as they could. Lamarck hoped in doing so that each generation would develop slightly longer necks and transfer that characteristic onto their offspring.

The correct answer is option (C) Its ancestors stretched their neck to get food.

Note: There are both long and short neck giraffe variations in the population, according to Darwin's theory. When short tree leaves are scarce, short neck giraffes die and long neck giraffes survive.