Expedition 🇨🇩 DR Congo
Okapi in DR Congo
The forest giraffe — a zebra-striped relative of the giraffe, hidden in Congo rainforest until 1901.
The species
The okapi looks like a creature assembled from spare parts: giraffe-like head on a horse body with vivid zebra stripes on the legs. It is the giraffe's only living relative, sharing a long blue tongue and ossicone head bumps, but adapted to dense rainforest rather than open savanna.
Habitat in DR Congo
Dense primary rainforest in the Democratic Republic of Congo holds the okapi's entire wild range. The Okapi Wildlife Reserve in the Ituri Forest protects the largest population, though civil conflict and poaching remain constant threats.
Where to spot one
Okapi Wildlife Reserve
Ituri Forest
UNESCO World Heritage Site — the global stronghold for wild okapis in primary rainforest.
Virunga National Park
Eastern DRC
Africa's oldest national park — mountain gorillas, lions, and hippos beneath active volcanoes.
Salonga National Park
Central DRC
Africa's largest tropical rainforest reserve — bonobos, forest elephants, and Congo peafowl.
Kahuzi-Biega National Park
Eastern DRC
Grauer's gorillas in montane forest — one of the last strongholds for this endangered subspecies.
Conservation status
Okapis are Endangered, confined to the Ituri Rainforest of DR Congo. Poaching, habitat loss, and instability from armed conflict threaten one of Africa's most unusual mammals.
Keep exploring
Keep exploring
Free on iOS
Log the Okapi in DR Congo
Spot one in the wild — scan it in Catch'Um to log your common discovery.