Okapi

The Okapi is a giraffid artiodactyl mammal native to the Ituri Rainforest, located in the northeast of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, in Central Africa.

Okapis prefer altitudes of 500 to 1,000 m, but may venture above 1,000 m in the eastern montane rainforests. Because there is a considerable amount of rain in these forests, Okapis have an oily, velvety coat of fur that repels the water. They develop this coat early in childhood also as a technique of camouflage. The range of the Okapi is limited by high montane forests to the east, swamp forests below 500 m to the west, savannas of the Sahel/Sudan to the north, and open woodlands to the south. Okapis are most common in the Wamba and Epulu areas.

Okapis are herbivores, eating tree leaves and buds, grass, ferns, fruit, and fungi. Many of the plant species fed upon by the Okapi are poisonous to humans. Examination of Okapi feces has revealed that the charcoal from trees burnt by lightning is consumed as well. Field observations indicate that the Okapi's mineral and salt requirements are filled primarily by a sulfurous, slightly salty, reddish clay found near rivers and streams.

Source: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Okapi - 06.05.2010