First photos of okapi in the wild by Martina Janeckova

On Thursday September 11, zoologists presented first photos of the okapi in the wild. This animal is difficult to capture because it is shy and usually moves around in couples. Okapi, which can be found in zoos worldwide, is a relative of giraffe but has zebra-like stripes on its legs and rear. These stripes are sometimes called “come follow me stripes”, because they are believed to help young okapi follow their mothers through the forest. Noelle Kumpel, a conservationist with the Zoological Society of London said that it is thought that this animal has inspired claims of unicorn sightings by Victorian-era explorers, because the male has two horns on its forehead, but if glimpsed from one side, they can look like one horn. The photos were taken in the Virunga National Park, Congo. In fact, the okapi is only known to exist in Congo, primarily further north in Ituri provinces’s Okapi Wildlife Reserve. “We are encouraged by the evidence that okapis have survived in Virunga, despite the years of conflict,” said Virunga National Park Director Emmanuel de Merode. “Park rangers have only recently regained control of this area that was formerly occupied by armed militias. But while it is positive that the okapi population remains, we are aware of their vulnerability to intense levels of poaching.” The okapi is also threatened by poachers who want to sell its meat, Kumpel said. In Virunga, near Rwanda and Uganda borders, live also some of the world’s last remaining mountain gorillas. Part of the area is still occupied by Congolese and Rwandan rebels. This year the Zoological Society photographed another shy mammal, a pygmy hippopotamus, in Liberia, which had not been photographed there before.

by Martina Janeckova for PocketNews (http://pocketnews.tv)

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edited bz Beata Biskova