Imperial Valley News

San Diego, California - At only 3 weeks old and covered in brown velvety fur, a male okapi calf tucks gently into a corner, watching as guests to the San Diego Zoo’s Wild Animal Park walk by admiring his 725-pound mother but not noticing the youngster.

The new addition is approximately 3-feet tall and a miniature version of his 5-foot tall mother. In the wild a mother okapi hides her calf in one spot, keeping him safe from predators, such as a leopard lurking in the tropical rain forests of Africa. Born June 17, the calf is the 34th okapi born at the Wild Animal Park.

At the Park, the calf named Zuri or “handsome,” will have access to the okapi habitat daily alongside his mother, Makini.

Okapi are shy creatures. Their unique appearance - a giraffe-like neck and head and zebra-striped hindquarters - stand out at the Park, but in this species’ natural habitat, the illusive giant is difficult to spot. In fact, scientists did not discover this species until the early 1900s.

The 1,800-acre San Diego Zoo’s Wild Animal Park (more than half of which has been set aside as protected native species habitat) is operated by the not-for-profit Zoological Society of San Diego. The Zoological Society, dedicated to the conservation of endangered species and their habitats, engages in conservation and research work around the globe and is responsible for maintaining accredited horticultural, animal, library, and photo collections. The Zoological Society also manages the 100-acre San Diego Zoo and the center for Conservation and Research for Endangered Species (CRES). The important conservation and science work of these entities is supported in part by the Foundation for the Zoological Society of San Diego.