Summary
This adult male Okapi specimen was received by the Museum on 20 January 1916 from Dr Christy, who had purchased it from the London taxidermists E. Gerrard and Sons. This mount is thought to be the only example in Australia.
Okapi are endemic to the Democratic Republic of Congo. They live in high canopy forests where they feed on the foliage of the forest's understorey using their long, prehensile tongue. They reach about 1.5m tall at their shoulder, making them only a third the height of their closest living relative, the Giraffe. The much longer neck of the Giraffe allows them to feed on the higher foliage of the trees found in their own savannah habitat.
Okapi populations are decreasing in the wild, where they are threatened by human activities such as agriculture and urban development. Since 2015 they have been considered endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).
Specimen Details
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Taxon Name
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Preferred Common name
Okapi
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Number Of Specimens
1
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Sex
Male
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Specimen Nature
Nature: Mount, Form: Dry
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Collected By
Dr Cuthbert Christy
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Category
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Scientific Group
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Discipline
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Collecting Areas
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Type of Item
Taxonomy
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Kingdom
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Phylum
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Subphylum
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Class
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Order
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Family
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Genus
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Species Name
johnstoni
Geospatial Information
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Country
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State
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Precise Location
Ituri Forest
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Latitude
1.62
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Longitude
29.35
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Geodetic Datum
WGS84
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Georeference Source
Google Earth
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Georeference Protocol
Estimation
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Georeference Date
2019-11-07T00:00:00
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Georeference By
Karen K. Roberts