2017-02-17 Fri

It’s a deer! It’s a zebra!
No, it’s an okapi!

Away from the preying eyes of the humans, nestled in a small pocket of tropical mountain forest in central Africa, this herbivore is native to the northeast of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Though Okapi resembles the deer, it bears striped markings similar to that of zebras and is most closely related to the giraffe. The okapi and the giraffe are the only living members of the family Giraffidae.

The Okapi has a long neck which helps it to reach leaves that are higher up and also helps it defend its territory and self. It’s red fur with white stripes on the hind quarters and at the tops of the legs provides Okapi with excellent camouflage.

The okapis are shy and prefer to stay in very thick foliage. The International Union for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN) classifies the okapi as “Endangered species”. Following which the Okapi Conservation Project was established in 1987 to protect okapi populations.

The Democratic Republic of Congo has featured its native okapi on banknotes as far back as 1955, and as recently as 1997. 50 Centimes banknote issued in 1997 has okapi both on its obverse and reverse. The obverse has a head of an Okapi while the reverse has a family of Okapis in Okapi Wildlife Reserve at Epulu. The watermark also has head of an Okapi.