‘Baby’ elephant has first look at the world

It’s scary when you take your first steps in the world. But when a mob is watching you, it can be even more terrifying.

That was certainly the case with this three-week-old baby elephant ‘Baby’ making her first public appearance at Melbourne Zoo.

The little girl clings very close to her mother, avoiding being trampled when rolling on the ground. Then, to the delight of zoo visitors, she was immersed in water for the first time.

Her look of utter fear turned to amusement as she sprayed her trunk, assuring herself to be the zoo’s top attraction for years to come.

Simply named ‘Baby’ for the time being, she weighed a healthy 110kg when she was born last month after being 22 months pregnant. But she has expressed between 12 and 14 liters of milk a day since then and now weighs 138kg.

She is only the second elephant to be born in Australia and the first to be artificially inseminated.