Okapi, Animals With Sharp Hearing System
The interesting thing about this animal is that the Okapi has a long blue tongue which is used to clean its eyes and ears.
Minanonymous
Okapi is a unique animal species with a body length of up to 2.5 meters and usually weighs 200 to 250 kilograms. Okapi is a mammal with a black-and-white striped body pattern.
This one animal has a sharp hearing system to detect the presence of enemies. Okapi only needs 5 minutes to sleep in a day, and usually, they roam at night looking for food.
This animal's appearance began in the 1800s, but now the Okapi species is declared almost extinct. Okapi is an endemic species found in the Ituri rainforest of Africa and is often dubbed the unicorn of Africa.
Okapi Unique Facts
Has the shape of a Zebra, but is closely related to the Giraffe
Judging from its appearance at a glance, this Okapi is similar to a zebra because of the stripes on its legs. However, who would have thought this animal was taxonomically closer to the giraffe? This Okapi is a member of the Ghiraffidae family. This means that Okapi is the only member of the giraffe that is not a giraffe.
Has good camouflage ability
Judging from the body shape of the Okapi, which has stripes on its legs, it turns out that these stripes have an important function for their survival in the wild. These stripes help the young Okapi to follow its mother in the dense forest. In addition, this stripe also serves to camouflage to avoid predators such as leopards. In addition to their stripes, these mammals also have another way to avoid predators: staying in their nests for six to nine weeks in their early life.
Has a very long tongue that reaches the eyes and ears
Another unique fact about Okapi is located on the tongue. This amazing fact cannot be found in other mammals, namely licking their ears. Okapi tongue has a length of 14-18 inches and can even reach 45cm. Very long, isn't it? Not only ears and eyes but it turns out that they also use this tongue to repel insects from the neck.
Has a distinctive compound in his feet
Okapi has a type of smelly gland on each toe. It turns out that the smell glands can secrete compounds such as tar to mark their territory. Apart from glands, male Okapi also often use urine as a sign of power, and Okapi will repel anyone who violates the limits of his power.
Have you met Okapi? Let's discuss Okapi in the comments column and share unique facts about Okapi so that it's not just you who knows.
Image credit: Image of Okapi | commons.wikimedia.org
