First outing for newborn baby Asian elephants at Prague Zoo

First outing for newborn baby Asian elephants at Prague Zoo

Visitors to Prague Zoo in the Czech Republic watched as two baby Asian elephants explored an outdoor enclosure with their mothers on Wednesday (May 13).

It was the first outing for the newest arrival, born on May 9 to mother Janita.

The still unnamed female calves were born just over a month apart, as the elder one was born on March 27.

The pair have the same father making them half sisters.

Prague Zoo, the most-visited in the Czech Republic which sees around 1.5 million visitors ever year, had suffered from a drop in income from ticket sales due to a nationwide coronavirus lockdown.

Outdoor areas at Czech zoos re-opened on April 27, as part of the government's programme of relaxing coronavirus restrictions.

As of Wednesday morning, the Czech Republic had reported 8,223 cases of coronavirus with 284 deaths.

Prague Zoo has hosted Asian elephants since 1933, when the first elephant arrived two years after the zoo was founded.

The first elephant to be born in the zoo arrived in 2013 and several have followed since.