The Immortal Naturalist's Guide to Cryptic Creatures: The Lake Giraffe

This post is part of the Immortal Naturalist's Guide series. The explanation for that series can be found in this post.

    Although it sounds unlikely that a large mammal would inhabit a high altitude lake that freezes over every winter, the kobolds of the Short River Valley would beg to differ. Their legends speak of a creature that appears to be a giraffe with flippers and a finned tail that only those with the purest and most lawful souls are able to see. While that last part certainly isn't true, the Lake Giraffe itself is a real creature that lives in the largest lake in the valley, Long Lake. During the summers, the Lake Giraffe spends its time grazing on lakeside plants and grasses, using its long neck to avoid getting too close to shore. Closer to shore, it is likely to be attacked by one of the many land predators of the valley, so the Land Giraffe spends almost all of its time in the deeper parts of the lake. To survive the winter, the Lake Giraffe has an interesting strategy. Much like the alligators further south which survive short freezes by going dormant under the ice, the Lake Giraffe will sit on the bottom of the lake with only its nose above the surface. The Lake Giraffe will then enter a deep slumber until the surface of the lake thaws again in the spring, apparently unharmed by spending months under the ice.

    The Lake Giraffe's cold resistance is due to its fur, which acts as a near-perfect insulator. Despite being covered in a layer of fur no different than a normal giraffe's, it has the magical property of being able to retain the perfect amount of body heat to keep the Lake Giraffe warm and comfortable. I was able to collect some samples and confirm these observations by finding the beast's nose on the lake ice one winter and waiting for the thaw. While it was still drowsy and disoriented, I was able to shave off some fur and get away before the Lake Giraffe was aware of my presence. Overall, the creature is terrified of other animals and will dive under the water, hiding for hours, as soon as it notices movement on land or the lake surface. Because of this bashfulness, I do not believe the creature poses much of a threat to those who happen upon it.

    If one was able to catch it without harming the Lake Giraffe, the creature's fur could be used to make very high quality winter-wear. That said, I believe that if the Lake Giraffe were missing its fur during the cold parts of the year, it would not be able to maintain enough warmth and it would freeze to death. To avoid the needless death of such a majestic creature, I would ask that anyone looking to collect its fur follow a method similar to mine, ensuring that the Lake Giraffe has time before winter to regrow its fur.