New baby pygmy hippo comes out to play at Edinburgh Zoo

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Edinburgh Zoo's new baby pygmy hippo has come outside to play for the first time this week.

Called Eve, as she was born on New Year's Eve, the baby has spent the last couple of months inside the hippo house, but is now exploring her outside enclosure, and even learning to swim.

PA

Donald Gow, senior hoofstock keeper at the zoo, told the BBC: "It's fantastic that Edinburgh Zoo has such a natural mum like Ellen. She's got great maternal instincts.

"Baby Eve is Ellen's second calf and both mum and baby seem to have a really strong bond.

"Eve is a little shy and tends to stick close to mum. She's growing in confidence every day."

Pygmy hippos are native to West Africa, and are now an endangered species. They are only half as tall as the hippopotamus, standing at 1m high as an adult.

See more heart-melting spring babies in zoos across the world:

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