KEEPERS at Marwell Zoo are celebrating their latest new arrival - after a pregnancy that lasted nearly 18 months.

The newborn okapi is expected to be a popular addition to the Marwell family and keepers have named the female calf Hazina.

Her name means "valuable treasure" in Swahili, the language in the okapi's native Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Although Hazina resembles a zebra with stripes on her hind limbs and rear, it is more closely related to the giraffe.

Hazina is the fifth okapi to be born at the zoo and has been hailed as a special birth.

The rare creatures are notoriously difficult to breed in captivity with fewer than 100 thought to exist around Europe.

Head keeper Simon Hawker said: "We are all ecstatic that after such a long pregnancy. Hazina and mum are both strong and healthy, and have already formed a strong bond.

"We are delighted that Zukisa's latest baby is a female, although every healthy okapi calf is fantastic to us."