Officials at the Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Garden have announced the birth of a new member of a rare and endangered giraffe species.
A news statement said that the okapi, whose gender was declared as male by zoo experts, was born on December 17 to Kuvua, its mother, and Kiloro, its father.
According to the press release, Renee Carpenter, senior keeper at the Cincinnati Zoo, “this is Kuvua’s fourth calf, and she is an amazing momma.” She is attending to all of the child’s needs. The calf appears healthy and robust. It’s also really fuzzy and silky.
According to zoo authorities, the mother and infant will continue to bond during the winter months and be visible to visitors in the okapi yard come spring.
At the Cincinnati Zoo, this young okapi is the 18th born since 1989. The zoo estimates that there are about 15,000 okapis in the world. Poaching and habitat loss have reduced the number of this species.
The International Union for Conservation of Nature’s Red List of Threatened Species lists okapis as endangered.
The creatures are the closest relatives of giraffes and are indigenous to the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The bodies of the two species are similar, while okapis have shorter necks.
Their reddish-brown hue and the horizontal black and white stripes on each of their four legs are other distinguishing features.
According to a press statement from the zoo, “These distinctive markings help the offspring follow their mothers through the dense forest.”
The zoo claims that okapis can reach up to 8 feet in height and have a lifespan of up to 16 years.
