Editing Okapi (section)

===Threats and conservation===
[[File:Okapi2.jpg|thumb|left|Okapi at [[Disney's Animal Kingdom]]]] 
The IUCN classifies the okapi as endangered.<ref name=OCP>{{cite news |last=Hebert |first=Amanda |date=26 November 2013 |title=Okapi Added to IUCN'S Endangered Species List |url=http://www.epulu-story.org/assets/endangered-press-release-11.25.docx |location=[[Jacksonville, Florida]] |publisher=[[Okapi Conservation Project]] |access-date=3 June 2014}}</ref> It is fully protected under Congolese law. The [[Okapi Wildlife Reserve]] and [[Maiko National Park]] support significant populations of the okapi, though a steady decline in numbers has occurred due to several threats. Other areas of occurrence are the [[Rubi Tele Hunting Reserve]], the Abumombanzi Reserve, the 
[[Sankuru Nature Reserve]], the [[Lomami National Park]]. Major threats include habitat loss due to [[logging]] and human settlement. Extensive hunting for [[bushmeat]] and skin and illegal mining have also led to population declines. A threat that has emerged quite recently is the presence of illegal armed groups around protected areas, inhibiting conservation and monitoring actions. A small population occurs north of the [[Virunga National Park]], but lacks protection due to the presence of armed groups in the vicinity.<ref name="iucn status 19 November 2021" /> In June 2012, a gang of poachers attacked the headquarters of the [[Okapi Wildlife Reserve]], killing six guards and other staff<ref>{{cite news|last1=Flocken|first1=J.|title=Tragic Losses in the Heart of Darkness|url=http://www.huffingtonpost.com/jeffrey-flocken/okapi-wildlife-reserve-attack_b_1634403.html|access-date=18 April 2015|agency=HuffPost|date=29 June 2012}}</ref> as well as all 14 okapis at their breeding center.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Jones|first1=P.|title=Infamous elephant poacher turns cannibal in the Congo|url=https://news.mongabay.com/2013/04/infamous-elephant-poacher-turns-cannibal-in-the-congo/|access-date=16 July 2017|agency=Mongabay|date=3 April 2013}}</ref>

The [[Okapi Conservation Project]], established in 1987, works towards the conservation of the okapi, as well as the growth of the indigenous [[Mbuti people]].<ref name="iucn status 19 November 2021" /> In November 2011, the [[White Oak Conservation]] center and [[Jacksonville Zoo and Gardens]] hosted an international meeting of the Okapi [[Species Survival Plan]] and the Okapi [[European Endangered Species Programme]] at [[Jacksonville]], which was attended by representatives from zoos from the US, Europe, and Japan. The aim was to discuss the management of captive okapis and arrange support for okapi conservation. Many zoos in North America and Europe currently have okapis in captivity.<ref name=meet>{{cite web|title=Okapi SSP and EEP International Meeting|url=http://www.okapiconservation.org/ssp-eep/|website=Okapi Conservation Project|publisher=Wildlife Conservation Global|access-date=18 April 2015|archive-date=18 April 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150418101547/http://www.okapiconservation.org/ssp-eep/|url-status=dead}}</ref>