Baby pygmy hippo meets public at Australian zoo

Australia's youngest pygmy hippo calf has made her public debut at Taronga Zoo in Sydney.

Kambiri, a Nigerian name meaning, "allow me to join this family", was born on June 26 and is the second calf to be born to mother Petre and father Timmy.

She was seen stumbling around her enclosure, weighing 16 kilogrammes. She has been growing fast, 300 grams per day.

Taronga Zoo spokeswoman, Danielle McGill said visitors need to be patient when visiting the hippo.

"She's only very new and for those people who would like to come and see her at the zoo, you have be patient because she is very, very shy and likes to sleep a lot so she's only out for short periods of time in the early morning," she said.

When Kambiri is older, she will join the Australian Breeding Programme, which helps increase the numbers of the endangered species.

Less than 3,000 pygmy hippos are believed to be left in the wild. The endangered hippos inhabit the lowland tropical forests of western Africa.