What may the leg stripes help with?

Camouflage and calves following mothers

Okapi Quiz: The Forest Giraffe With Zebra-Striped Legs

Striped legs make it look like a zebra, but its closest living relative is the giraffe, and this okapi quiz explores the elusive animal. Play an interactive set of 10 questions on the Ituri rainforest, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Harry Johnston, its long tongue, ossicones, camouflage stripes, infrasound, solitary life, the Okapi Wildlife Reserve and conservation.

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🎯 Daily Trivia Challenge • 🧠 10 Questions • ⏱️ 150 Seconds

Question 1 / 10 Time: 150s

Relative
What is the okapi's closest living relative?
Country
Where do okapis live in the wild?
Forest
Which rainforest is a stronghold for okapis?
Stripes
What may the leg stripes help with?
Tongue
What can the okapi's long tongue reach?
Horns
What are the short horns on male okapis called?
Described
When did Western science formally describe the okapi?
Unicorn
What nickname did the okapi earn?
Sound
How do okapis communicate over long distances?
Status
How is the okapi classified by the IUCN?

Explanations: answer key for all 10 questions

Q1: What is the okapi's closest living relative?
Answer: The giraffe
Its stripes are misleading.
Q2: Where do okapis live in the wild?
Answer: Democratic Republic of the Congo
They live only in that country.
Q3: Which rainforest is a stronghold for okapis?
Answer: The Ituri Forest
It is in the northeast of the country.
Q4: What may the leg stripes help with?
Answer: Camouflage and calves following mothers
They break up the outline.
Q5: What can the okapi's long tongue reach?
Answer: Its own ears and eyes
It is used to strip leaves.
Q6: What are the short horns on male okapis called?
Answer: Ossicones
Giraffes have them too.
Q7: When did Western science formally describe the okapi?
Answer: 1901
It was long rumored.
Q8: What nickname did the okapi earn?
Answer: African unicorn
It was so rarely seen.
Q9: How do okapis communicate over long distances?
Answer: With infrasound
Humans cannot hear it.
Q10: How is the okapi classified by the IUCN?
Answer: Endangered
Poaching and conflict threaten it.

Okapi Quiz – The Forest Giraffe With Zebra-Striped Legs

The okapi lives only in the rainforests of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, especially the Ituri Forest. Its striped legs suggest a zebra, but its closest living relative is the giraffe.

Long rumored by outsiders and called the African unicorn, the okapi was formally described in 1901 after Harry Johnston sent specimens to Europe. Males have short horns called ossicones, and the okapi's long tongue can reach its own eyes and ears.

Okapis are mostly solitary and communicate with infrasound. Leg stripes help with camouflage and may help calves follow their mothers. Listed as Endangered, they are protected in the Okapi Wildlife Reserve, a UNESCO site.

What This Quiz Teaches

Animal lovers will enjoy these questions.

Where okapis live
What they are related to
How they look
How they communicate
Why they are endangered

Did You Know?

The okapi is a national symbol of the DR Congo.
Calves hide for weeks after birth.
Okapis eat leaves, fruit and fungi.
Some zoos run breeding programs.
Camera traps help researchers study them.