As an Indonesian citizen, you must know the orangutan, a unique primate found on the islands of Sumatra and Kalimantan. Orangutans are the largest arboreal animals in the world and they are touted as one of the closest human relatives. Although there are also in Malaysia, the orangutan in particular is known as a typical Indonesian animal.
Orangutans are one of the most famous animals whose names start with the letter ‘O’. However, of course it’s not just them, there are a number of other mammals whose names come from the letter ‘O’ and some have extraordinary uniqueness. Here are 5 of them.
1. Owa
Primates whose names start with the letter ‘O’ are not only orangutans, there are also gibbons. Like orangutans, gibbons are apes, which means they differ from monkeys in that they don’t have tails. Gibbon is part of the family Hylobatidae and according to Britannica they consist of about 20 species.
All species of gibbons live in Southeast Asia and many of them can be found in Indonesia. That includes gibbons (Symphalangus syndactylus), the largest gibbon species which can reach 90 cm in length and 12 kg in weight. There is also a Javan gibbon (Hylobates moloch) that live in the forests of West Java and Central Java.
One of the most famous of the gibbons is their loud voice. Both male and female gibbons use their voices as territorial markers. Gibbons are also known as loyal animals and they only mate with one partner in their lifetime.
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2. Ocelot
ocelot (theanimalspot.com) –
There is also a cat family animal whose name begins with the letter ‘O’. One of them is ocelot (Leopardus pardalis) that live in Central and South America. The ocelot’s appearance is quite similar to that of a jaguar or a leopard, but their pattern is wider and their body size is smaller.
Ocelots can reach a length of 1.4 meters to the tail and weigh 15 kg. When compared to domestic cats, the size of the ocelot is about twice as large. Reported Treehugger, ocelots are nocturnal animals and they spend more time in the trees. The ocelot’s diet includes rabbits, rodents, and birds.
Also Read: 6 Facts About Bengal Cats, Rare Cats from America
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3. Oncilla
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oncilla (animalia.bio)–
Oncilla (Leopardus tigrinus) are still closely related and have an appearance similar to an ocelot. The difference is in terms of size. Oncilla are smaller than ocelots. Oncilla length only reaches about 1 meter. Their posture is slimmer so they only weigh up to 3 kg.
Oncilla’s way of life is similar to that of ocelots, which is active at night and often climbs trees. In addition, Oncilla was also good at swimming. Although small, oncilla are tough hunters and they can sometimes catch prey larger than their bodies.
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4. Oryx
oryx arab (weboryx.com)–
Next there is the oryx, an antelope-like animal whose name is taken from its genus name, genus Oryx. There are 4 species of oryx and they are spread in the Arabian Peninsula to North and East Africa. The largest species is the gemsbok (Oryx gazella) whose size reaches 125 cm high and weighs 240 kg.
There are also species of Arabic oryx (Oryx leucoryx) that were once extinct in the wild but were successfully bred in captivity and then released back into their natural habitat. All oryx species are famous for their straight horns and can reach a length of more than 1 meter. Male oryx use their horns to fight each other for territory.
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5. Okapi
okapi (britannica.com)–
Finally there is okapi (Okapia johnstoni), a unique animal whose appearance resembles a combination of a zebra and a deer. However, they are actually closely related to giraffes because they are part of the family Giraffidae. Okapi are endemic animals of the Democratic Republic of Congo and they are not found in other countries.
National Geographic mentions that the okapi reaches a length of 2.4 meters, a height of 1.5 meters to the shoulder, and a weight of 300 kg. The males have horns, but they are not very noticeable because the horns are short and covered in skin. Like the giraffe, okapi has a long tongue to pick up leaves that are located high.
The five mammals above have names starting with the letter ‘O’ and they have their own uniqueness that is not widely known.
Read also: Unique, these 6 animals look like a combination of two different types of animals
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