Baby Elephant Takes A Tumble; Grown-Ups Rush To Its Aid

When a baby elephant fell over while trying to climb out of a small ditch at Switzerland's Zoo Zürich, two adults rushed over within a few seconds to help.

Footage of the event, which took place at the zoo's new Kaeng Krachan elephant house, was uploaded to YouTube on Aug. 6. Though it's not clear from the video whether the baby's mother is one of the adults that comes to its aid, elephants are known to have tight bonds with herd members outside their immediate family.

Mother and calf share a special connection, but adults have been known to watch over little ones that aren't theirs. Other members of the clan may act as babysitters, a practice that helps young female elephants prepare for motherhood.

Zoo Zürich's elephant facility was named for the Kaeng Krachan National Park in Thailand, where the Swiss zoo supports the conservation of Asiatic elephants. As part of the effort, the zoo helps work toward resolving the "human-elephant conflict" by putting up protective fences to keep wild elephants from damaging plantation grounds.

H/T Reddit