The head resembles a fawn with two large ears; the body resembles a horse with reddish-brown hair; and the front legs and hind torso have black and white stripes like zebras, which were once considered close relatives of zebras.
This animal is the hoga (pi, read two sounds), and the name may not be related to its image, after all, this animal was only discovered by zoologists in 1900. At first it was classified as a horse, and later it was thought that it might be a deer. There is no dispute, and naturally there is no way to introduce people.
And the okapi are so small that they are rarely seen even by locals in the African rainforests where they live. They are alert by nature and run away at the slightest hint of turmoil. And their hearing is very sensitive, which leads to people have not yet seen the people of The Hoga, who has already heard the voice of the person running away.
Even very experienced hunters who did not stay in the rainforest for a month could not catch The Hoga Gale.
Of course, the rainforest is full of trees and is itself a good place to hide your tracks. The Okapi never lived in groups, they acted alone. They will only be together temporarily during the mating season, and then when the female is pregnant with the child, the male will go to the end of the world again.
The female okapi then takes the child to life, they put the child in a secret location, and every day they look for food to come back to feed the child. Each okapi has its own territory and is not allowed to enter. But perhaps to reproduce better, males allow females to travel through their territory in search of food.
The little Okapi is also very magical, the magic is that they will not defecate for a month after birth, and some okapis will not defecate until they are two months old.
It is impossible for any animal not to defecate for a month or two, and this characteristic of the Okapi has successfully contributed a topic to their strangeness.
According to zoologists, the reason why the little Okapi did not have defecation within one month of birth may be that they were hidden by the okapi mother during the month, and did not follow the mother to find food, but waited in place. If you have a bowel movement, the smell will attract predators. So little Hoga doesn't defecate is actually protecting himself.
Another magic thing is that it is a close relative of a giraffe, but it has the black and white stripes that zebras have.
When zoologists first discovered the animal in 1900, they classified it as a horse genus. But by 1901, scientists had acquired a fur and two skulls. Zoologists quickly recognized that the Okapi was very similar to the ice age short-necked giraffe.
And the male Okapi still has small antlers on his head, while the female does not. People boldly speculate that the current giraffe may have looked like a long hoga plough tens of thousands of years ago.
Did the zebra split its leg or the giraffe cheated? Many people believe that since the Okapi is a deer, and it has a zebra pattern on its body, it is not a cross between giraffes and zebras. Just as horses and donkeys crossed out of mules, mules have the characteristics of horses and the characteristics of donkeys.
But it is not, the Okapi has nothing to do with the zebra, and as for the black and white patterns on the limbs like the zebra, it should be the result of evolution under the influence of the environment.
The black and white stripes on the back of the okapi can help them recognize each other in the dark environment of the rainforest, especially when the little okapi follows his mother to forage for food, and it is not easy to get lost.
When they encounter an enemy running away, the black and white patterns are interlaced, which can also give the enemy a dazzling feeling and take the opportunity to escape.
The most amazing place is that the Okapi secretes "asphalt". The Okapi has a long blue tongue, which is also very rare in the animal kingdom. It used to be thought that "asphalt" was secreted by the tongue and dripped as they moved, marking their territory.
In fact, this asphalt-like substance is just black and mucus, which is secreted by a gland on their feet. This "asphalt" emits a special smell to mark its own territory and the path it has traveled. Other okapis are able to find their own family members through this smell.
The number of okapi is relatively rare, roughly estimated to be only about 30,000 in the world, and the actual number is not known to anyone, because they are very timid, and it is difficult to find them in their habitat.
Because they are difficult to find in the wild, the wild habits of the Okapi are difficult to observe. Hopefully, people will have enough time to protect them and understand them. Don't wait for one day to find out that they seem to be dying, only to suddenly realize that we don't even know about it.