A Giraffe’s Dark Tongue May Help Protect It from the Sun

The front part of a giraffe’s tongue is usually dark purple, bluish, or nearly black, a coloration associated with melanin pigment. Because giraffes feed for long periods with their tongues exposed to sunlight, a common explanation is that the pigment helps protect the tissue from ultraviolet light. This is a plausible hypothesis, not a definitively proven cause of the coloration. The illustration is AI-generated.