It has turned out that there are four different giraffe species in Africa, according to a new scientific analysis released on Thursday. Researchers previously considered all giraffes across Africa to belong to a single species. 

New data and genetic studies have led a task force of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) to split the tallest mammal on land into four groups: Northern giraffes, reticulated giraffes, Masai giraffes and Southern giraffes. 

Naming different giraffes matters because “each species has different population sizes, threats and conservation needs,” said the IUCN’s Michael Brown, a researcher in Windhoek, Namibia, who led the assessment.