okapi

American  

[oh-kah-pee] / oʊˈkɑ pi /

noun

plural

okapis,

plural

okapi

1. an African mammal, Okapia johnstoni, closely related to and resembling the giraffe, but smaller and with a much shorter neck.

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okapi British  

/ əʊˈkɑːpɪ /

noun

1. a ruminant mammal, Okapia johnstoni, of the forests of central Africa, having a reddish-brown coat with horizontal white stripes on the legs and small horns: family Giraffidae

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Etymology

Origin of okapi

1900; < Bambuba (Mvu’ba), a Central Sudanic language of the NE Democratic Republic of the Congo (or < a related Pygmy dial.), according to English Africanist Harry Johnston (1858–1927), author of the first zoological descriptions of the animal

Example Sentences

The "incredibly special" birth of an okapi will help to reveal "one of the least known and understood species on the planet", a keeper has said.

From BBC

Rewind to 11.5 million years ago, when the common ancestors of the modern giraffe and its closest evolutionary cousin, the okapi, roamed what is now Africa.

From Scientific American

Soon this resulting makeshift family is planning a benefit dance show for an animal Elias adores, the okapis, an endangered species related to the giraffe and endemic to the Democratic Republic of Congo.

From New York Times

“There was more than one wet eye that day,” said Michelle Gadd, who leads the White Oak preserve for endangered and threatened species such as cheetahs, rhinos, okapi, zebras and condors.

From Washington Post

On the other hand, the giraffe has lost at least 53 olfactory genes compared with the okapi.

From Science Magazine