The American Museum Journal 



Vol. XI MAlU'll, 1!)11 Xo. 3 



THE OKAPI 



BY J. A. ALLKX 



The Aiiicncitn fiiitlKintt/ on iiKtiiiiiKils, J^rofvssor .1 . A. Allen, (jircs in 

 flif (olltiiniKj nil nccoiint of the olni/ii, of il.s disnivcrii in IIHII irlnn il ini.s 

 thoiujhf to III (I nldfirc of the horse, of Ike proof later in the .same j/ear that it 

 is rcluiid to the (jirntfe nnil to eertnin extinct forms from the Miocene if south- 

 ern Europe mid if Iiiiliit. AllhoiKjh the ohiijii hiis been inioieii for n space of 

 fell jiears and is corereil liij a literature of more than half a hnndred titles from 

 the stuilji of olcapi slriiis and sl:eliioiis, the liriiKj animal, at least till reeentlii, 

 has nicer been seen in its natire haunts by a irliite man and the realistic ol.-api 

 group to he constructed in the American M nseum as a result of the si.v months' 

 work of the Museum's Congo Expedition in the (Ircat Forest of Africa irill 

 prove a notable erent in the scientific world. 



OX Noveml)er 20, 1900, u letter was read at a meeting of the Zoolojii- 

 eal Society of London from Sir Harry Johnston, announeing' that 

 he liad ohtaiiicd e\ i(h'iice "of the existence of a very remarkal>h' 

 new horse," which appeared to inhabit the Great Congo Forest. At the 

 Belgian jjost of Mheni he found that this animal was called "okapi" by the 

 Bamt)ul)a nati\'es of tlie region, and he was fortunate^ enongh to olitain 

 piece's of the skin that had been made into waist-helts and bandoliers. 

 These pieces exhibited the stripes of the legs and hind quarters, and indi- 

 cated an animal ditferent from any known zebra or wild ass. These 

 fragments were forwarded by Sir Harry to the Secretary of the Zocilogical 

 Society and exhibited at a meeting of the Society held December IS, 1 *)()(). 

 Thus was olttained the first definite kiiowledgt' of a, horse-like animal 

 marked with black and white stripes referred to by early Dutch and 

 Portuguese writers as existing in the great forests of Central Africa. 



At a meeting of the London Society held I^'cbruary .">, 1<)0L these frag- 

 ments were shown and described by Dr. P. L. Sclater as representing a new 

 species of zebra, which he named ;ifter its discoverer. Sir Harry Johnston, 

 Eqiiiis johiistoni, the ref(>rence of tlu' sj)ecics to Eipius being tentative. At 

 a meeting of the /(xilogical Society held three months later (May 7, 1!)()1), 



73 



