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Okapi born in the Bristol Zoo
12 years ago
Dear Princess Celestia
With the stripes of a zebra and the tongue of a giraffe, okapis are constantly compared to their more recognisable cousins. But today at Bristol Zoo, the reclusive okapis commanded the public's attention.
The notoriously shy creatures made a public appearance at the zoo, where the newborn okapi took her first steps outdoors. The baby Okapi, named K'tusha, took tentative steps outside the stable doors in her enclosure. The apprehensive foal was encouraged by her mother, Lodja, who nuzzled her young in an affectionate display. Bristol Zoo was the first in the UK to care for an okapi in 1961 and the first UK zoo to breed one in 1963.
Since then, 37 foals have been born at the zoo. Okapis are also bred in London and Chester. The okapi's striking markings are on the back of its legs so its offspring can follow it through dense jungle.
Known as the 'African unicorn' the herbivore has a long blue tongue that strips leaves from branches. The female okapi has one foal every two years. Their pregnancy lasts 15 months and foals typically stay with their mother for two or three years. Bristol Zoo helps to fund the 8,000 square mile Okapi Wildlife Reserve in the Democratic Republic of Congo. The okapi was first discovered in the Democratic Republic of Congo in 1901. After increasingly rarer sightings, it vanished from the wildlife radar for decades from 1959, prompting fears that it had died out. But eight years ago researchers working for the WWF found okapi tracks in the wild.
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/art.....#ixzz2WRB2ZXLk
The notoriously shy creatures made a public appearance at the zoo, where the newborn okapi took her first steps outdoors. The baby Okapi, named K'tusha, took tentative steps outside the stable doors in her enclosure. The apprehensive foal was encouraged by her mother, Lodja, who nuzzled her young in an affectionate display. Bristol Zoo was the first in the UK to care for an okapi in 1961 and the first UK zoo to breed one in 1963.
Since then, 37 foals have been born at the zoo. Okapis are also bred in London and Chester. The okapi's striking markings are on the back of its legs so its offspring can follow it through dense jungle.
Known as the 'African unicorn' the herbivore has a long blue tongue that strips leaves from branches. The female okapi has one foal every two years. Their pregnancy lasts 15 months and foals typically stay with their mother for two or three years. Bristol Zoo helps to fund the 8,000 square mile Okapi Wildlife Reserve in the Democratic Republic of Congo. The okapi was first discovered in the Democratic Republic of Congo in 1901. After increasingly rarer sightings, it vanished from the wildlife radar for decades from 1959, prompting fears that it had died out. But eight years ago researchers working for the WWF found okapi tracks in the wild.
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/art.....#ixzz2WRB2ZXLk
