Okapi

Okapi Fact

Okapi fact # 1
The Okapi has stripes on its legs that make it look like a zebra, and it was therefore originally believed to be a zebra relative or even a crossing between a zebra and a giraffe. Today we know that the Okapi is related to the giraffe. Both the giraffe and the Okapi belong to the family Giraffidea in the order Artiodactly, while the various zebra species belong to the family Equidae in the order Perissodactyla.

Okapi fact # 2

The Okapi is included in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. It is considered endangered since its natural jungle habitat is gradually destroyed and used for agriculture, infrastructural development, and human settlement.

The Okapi is also hunted by poachers. The conservation efforts have however been successful and IUNC has only classified the Okapi as Lower Risk – near threatened. As of 2006, the population seems to be quite stable, but this can rapidly change and the Okapi and its habitat must therefore be carefully monitored. Observing the Okapi is difficult since it is a shy animal living in a densely grown jungle.

Okapi fact # 3
The Okapi sticks to a varied diet that includes leaves, buds, grass, fungi and fruits. Interestingly enough, it consumes plenty of things that we know are highly toxic. We still do not know how the Okapi manage to eat poisonous things without being ill, but according to one theory the Okapi will eat charcoal from burned trees and use the coal to neutralize the poison. Traces of charcoal have been found in Okapi dung. This type of behaviour has been witnessed among other animal species, such as the red colobus monkeys in Zanzibar.

Okapi fact # 4
The native inhabitants of the Ituri Forest used to occasionally catch Okapis in their hunting pits, but the Okapi remained unknown to the Europeans for a very long time. Famous journalist H. M. Stanley briefly mentioned the Okapi a book about his African journeys. The Wambutti pygmies had told him of a leaf-eating donkey like animal that lived in the forest. According to Stanley, the Wambuttis used to call this animal “Atti”, but this might be a simple case of mishearing since it later turned out that the creature was commonly known as Okapi rather than Atti.

Okapi fact # 5
It might have taken much longer for science to finally encounter the mysterious Okapi if Stanley had not rescued a group of pygmies from a German showman that had kidnapped them and planned to exhibit them at a fair in Europe. Stanley invited the pygmies to stay with him as guests and they told him a lot about the various fascinating creatures that inhabited the jungle. When Stanley asked them about the donkey-like leaf-eating animal, they confirmed that it really existed and that it looked like a mix between a zebra and a mule.

Okapi fact # 6
Okapis male Okapi has an interesting way of marking his territory. He will cross his front legs, urinate on them and then walk through the dense vegetation. This behavior has however only been witnessed in captivity. The Okapis can also urinate directly on plants, and both sexes will regularly rub their necks against tree trunks.

adult Okapi

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Okapi fact