Zoo History: An African Unicorn

"Ex Africa semper aliquid novi" ["Out of Africa, there is always something new."]

- Pliny the Elder

Elephants and giraffes, rhinoceroses and hippopotamuses - for centuries, the large African mammals have been the stars of zoo collections.  There was one large African mammal, however, which did not appear in menagerie collections, for the simple reason that it hadn't been discovered yet... at least not to western science.  Not much was known about it, except that it was vaguely believed to be equine, and found only in the densest forests of the interior.  For years before its discovery, its very existence was shrouded in rumor and legend, so much so that in some circles, it was (derisively) called "the African unicorn."

Among the African explorers who heard of (but did not see) the elusive animal was Henry Morton Stanley, best known for his "Dr Livingstone, I presume?"  After leaving the forests of the Congo, he declared "You may find there the donkey that the pygmies told me they caught in pits."  Among those heeding his words was Sir Harry Johnston, the new colonial governor of Uganda.

Not long after his arrival in Uganda, Sir Harry got his first chance to go unicorn hunting.  He had come to the rescue of a group of pygmies who had been abducted by a German showman (foreshadowing the story of Ota Benga a few years later), who was planning on shipping them to Paris for the 1900 Exhibition, and was repatriating them to their native forests.  On the journey, he asked his new friends if they knew anything about this mysterious animal which he had been hearing about.  They replied that not only did they know it, but they had tracked it, seen it, and eaten in.  They called it "o'api."

Eventually, Johnston was presented with some strips of striped hide, which led him to believe that he was in pursuit of some sort of forest-dwelling zebra.  Before he returned to Uganda, he secured promises from Belgian authorities to forward to him any skins or skeletons they acquired.  When these arrived, he was amazed to discover that the animal resembled a giraffe.  The species was formally described in 1901 - that such a large and unique animal should have remained unknown to science until the dawn of the twentieth century shocked the zoological community.  It was awarded a scientific name that reflected the native name for the animal, as well as honored the man who brought it to the attention of the world.

This watercolor of okapis was painted by Sir Harry Johnston himself - amazingly, without having seen more than skulls and skins of the animal

The first okapi to leave its native Ituri Forest was sent to the Antwerp Zoo in 1919, but died shortly afterwards.  This became something of a trend, as captured okapis were infested with parasites and tended to die during transport or shortly after arriving in European zoos.  Eventually, the decision was made to limit the export of animals to a select few, which would be quarantined within their native range and shipped out when they were deemed healthy enough to adjust to their new homes.  This new trend has been successful, and captive-bred okapi can now be found in zoos across the world.