Baby Animals: Reader Photos

By Joshua Pramis
October 18, 2011
There are few things that get camera shutters clicking like the sighting of an animal, whether it’s in its natural habitat or at a zoo. But when a baby animal appears, watch out! The crowd will break out into a collective “Aww” and start to take as many photos as their memory cards will allow.

We can tell from the sheer volume of baby animal photos uploaded to Travel + Leisure’s community. And we couldn’t resist sharing them. The only tricky part was deciding which baby animal photos weren’t quite cute enough to make the cut. But we persevered and hand-selected the ones guaranteed to make you smile.

One such photo was a close-up of a baby goat in Italy that seemed to take great interest in the camera poised to snap its picture since it stopped and gazed directly into the lens. This shot is especially adorable thanks to the slight fish-eye lens used, which has the effect of making the baby goat’s head seem just a tad bigger than it should have been.

No special effects are needed to make a young elephant in Chiang Mai, Thailand, look unbelievably endearing and heartwarming. The calf is sheepishly sticking close to its mom, pressing its head up against her sturdy leg. It’s particularly touching because any of us can picture exactly this scenario happening with a young human and his or her parent.

Another shot shows how a parent’s desire to protect its young also rings true throughout species. An ever-vigilant leopard was spotted standing over its younger offspring and its eyes are fixated on the ground below—watchful of any approaching creature that might prove a threat to its cub.

Beyond the über-cute factor, these are just truly great photos, and that’s no easy feat for wild subjects—babies—that are almost constantly on the move or fussing. Photos like these require not only a keen artistic eye, but also a little bit of luck…and a lot of patience, as any parent knows.

So paw through our collection of adorable baby animal photos. Hopefully it will inspire you to share your own photos with us, which you can do by signing up or logging in to our community. You never know…we just might use one of your photos in our next slideshow.
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1 of 18

Baby Buffalo, Wyoming

A very buffalo family reunion.

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Baby Elephant, Chiang Mai, Thailand

Save me from the paparazzi!

3 of 18

Baby Gazelle

You said what now?

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4 of 18

Baby Giraffe, Masai Mara Reserve, Kenya

Mama loves you too.

5 of 18

Baby Goat, Italy

Work the camera. Strike a pose!

6 of 18

Baby Hummingbird, Arizona

Ready for takeoff!

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7 of 18

Baby Kangaroo, New South Wales, Australia

You…don’t look like my mama.

8 of 18

Baby Koala, Daintree, Australia

Just hangin’ around.

9 of 18

Baby Leopard, The Serengeti, Tanzania

Don’t worry! Mama’s got your back, baby!

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10 of 18

Baby Lion, Botswana

Meow…I mean…raawwrr!

11 of 18

Baby Llama (“Nirvana Llama”), Peru

Playtime can be so exhausting.

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Baby Monkey, Mumbai, India

Where’s my fur coat?!

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13 of 18

Baby Monkey, Texas

C’mere and give Mama a hug.

14 of 18

Baby Octopus, Conception Island, Bahamas

Aww, it’s so…cute?

15 of 18

Baby Orangutan, New Orleans

Nap time!

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16 of 18

Baby Polar Bear, Churchill, Canada

Peekaboo!

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Baby Seal, Galápagos Islands

Eyes wide shut.

18 of 18

Baby Tiger, Tacoma, WA

You wanna mess with me?

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By Joshua Pramis