This year, the world was introduced to Moo Deng the hippo, Pesto the penguin, and Beardsley the anteater. They are baby animals from all over the world, and their cuteness has taken social media by storm. Moo Deng, who is from Thailand, has even shown up on USC’s Sustainability Hub and Alumni Association Instagram pages as a baby hippo meme. The Trojan community is embracing the cute animal craze.
So what is it about baby animals that makes them so irresistible? And why are they so relatable?
“There is a term called ‘baby schema’ that actually started human to human, the idea that baby faces, you know, big eyes, cute, little round...preferably chubby face, like a little button nose, like that kind of baby face makes adults interact differently and attracts adults in a different way than an adult face might,” Ashley Uyeshiro Simon, Associate Professor of Clinical Occupational Therapy at USC.
And this phenomenon is not much different with baby animals, she said.
“The idea of baby animals is interesting, because there are theories out there that say, hey, baby schema can actually apply to animals,” Uyeshiro Simon said. “They have the big eyes, they have the little noses, they have the little round faces, right? And you get the same reaction from humans, which is, ‘Oh my gosh!’ Right?”
But it’s not just the pure cuteness that draws in viewers all over social media. Uyeshiro Simon explained an idea called the biophilia hypothesis: “There are a lot of studies that show or argue that bonds with animals can fulfill the human need for attachment and relationships. Even in the absence of other humans, you can still feel very attached to and feel a very deep emotional relationship to your animals.”
Interacting with baby animals reminds us of our natural roots, she said, giving us a breather from the rush of urban life. Moo Deng the hippo, Pesto the very chubby and fluffy penguin, and Beardsley the anteater all drive our psychological and biological desires to find connection in nature.
“Listen, I don’t get to see, you know, king penguins be born all the time, especially ones that are as fluffy and amazing as Pesto the penguin” Uyeshiro Simon said. “I don’t get to see baby hippos all the time. I feel like the wild side is really tapping into that sense of awe and wonder that you might get if you visit the Grand Canyon ... you think, my gosh, how powerful, right?”
So when we watch cute clips of Moo Deng the hippo, Pesto the penguin and Beardsley the anteater, we aren’t just participating in a viral trend: we are tapping into our natural selves.