World Okapi Day – October 18

World Okapi Day – October 18

The Giraffe and Okapi Specialist Group of the IUCN Species Survival Commission recognizes World Okapi Day, which has been held on October 18 each year since 2016.

This Endangered and magnificent animal,okapi is the giraffe’s only living relative. Deep in the heart of Africa hidden in the dense jungles of the Democratic Republic of Congo, lives the mysterious and enigmatic okapi. Although a respected cultural symbol of the only country in which it is found, its livelihood is threatened by slash-and-burn agriculture, illegal gold mining, and bush meat poaching, despite its protected status since 1933.

The day is centered around celebrating this special animal and using it as a flagship species to protect the entire forest ecosystem in which it lives. 

– Source: Internet –