10 Adorable Baby Animals in the Wild

Lion cubs open their eyes after 10–15 days, but remain fully dependent on their mother for up to two years. In the wild, the whole pride rallies to protect them.

Baby elephants are raised communally — aunts, cousins and grandmothers all play a role. They drink up to 3 gallons of milk a day and stay close to mum for years.

Red fox kits are born in litters of 2–12. Their father stands guard outside the den while their mother nurses, and both parents bring food as the kits grow.

Koala joeys crawl unaided into the pouch seconds after birth despite being blind, hairless and earless. They stay attached to a teat for months before first seeing the world.

Harbor seal pups are born knowing how to swim, but often stay on land for the first days of life. Their mother may leave them alone for hours while hunting — they are not abandoned.

This is little Nzuri — just 7 days old. Baby giraffes drop nearly 6 feet to the ground at birth, and must be walking within minutes to survive in the wild.

Giant panda cubs weigh just 3–5 oz at birth while their mothers can weigh 200 lbs. They are entirely dependent for the first year and won't leave mum until age 2.

Newborn hedgehogs, called hoglets, are born in litters of 4–5. Their spines emerge within an hour of birth, and they begin foraging on their own by just 6 weeks old.

Gray wolf pups are born deaf and blind and rely completely on their pack. By 8 weeks they emerge from the den, and the whole family — not just the parents — feeds and protects them.

America's national bird raises its young in the largest nests of any North American bird, sometimes 10 ft deep. Eaglets fledge after 10–12 weeks and learn to hunt from their parents.