Weekly Adorbs For Dec. 17-21, 2012

TINY TENRECS

Tenrec babies make their debut at the Museum of Science in Boston after being born at the Virginia Zoo. They may look like hedgehogs, but they are not directly related to them. Still, they're pretty precious! 

TURTLE LOVE

This gorgeous Chinese yellow-headed box turtle is one of five new additions to the World of Reptiles Nursery at the Bronx Zoo in New York. 

OCELOT CLAUS

At the Seneca Park Zoo in New York, an ocelot plays around with a stocking. Is there coal or treats inside, little guy? 

HEY BABY

Adelina the gorilla looks precious as ever at the Little Rock Zoo in Arkansas. Her mother, Sekani, has been very protective, staying close to her baby's side.

MARVELOUS MEERKAT

At the El Paso Zoo in Texas, a new meerkat baby quickly poses for the camera. She is currently being housed off from the exhibit with her family.

JOLLY CRAB

A giant Japanese spider crab gets into the holiday spirit next to candy canes at the Tennessee Aquarium.

PRETTY PANGOLIN

At the Pangolin Rehabilitation Center in Cambodia, a lovely pangolin poses pretty for the photographer. Beautiful!

WHAT'S MY NAME?

At the Stone Zoo in Massachusetts, baby Arctic foxes patiently wait to be named. If you have any cute ideas, visit Boston.com to submit a name!

TASMANIAN CUTIE

Big John the Tasmanian devil eats chicken pieces as he makes his very first appearance at the Wild Life Sydney Zoo in Australia.

AARDVARK AWWS

An aardvark baby stares into the camera, showing off how much it has grown since its birth on September 21. The parents of the cub, Karla and Plucky, have had three cubs since 2010. 

GORILLA GREATNESS

An adorable baby gorilla named Merry enjoys a ride on its mother's back at Zoo Atlanta in Georgia. Enjoy it while you're still tiny, little dude! 

DARLING DOLPHIN

At Discovery Cove in Florida, a brand new baby dolphin girl poses with its mother while they swim around their pool. The little female is three and a half feet long and weighs 35 pounds. Too cute!

A+ COCKATOO

At Perth Zoo in Australia, a red-tailed black cockatoo is being trained by zookeepers to be a part of the education experiences at the zoo. The bird is said to be a fast learner and will be ready to start off the 2013 school year!

ALWAYS LOOK ON THE BRIGHT SIDE

A picture-ready sea otter holds on tight to a smiley-face ball at the Minnesota Zoo. Looks like he wants to play!

STICK IT

A stunning hand-raised scooty owl named Phoenix gets ready for its landing at a free flight bird show hosted by Australia's Taronga Zoo. 

TURTLE RESCUE

It's turtle rescue season at the New England Aquarium in Boston, Massachusetts! This young loggerhead turtle is currently being treated. It may look small now, but in due time, it will grow to be 100 pounds! 

SUPERSTAR OFFICE DOGS

"The Office" star Brian Baumgartner poses with his dog Charlie and one of PetSmart's canine contestants for Santa's Next Reindeer contest. Baumgartner was at the grand opening of the Banfield Pet Hospital and PetSmart in Los Angeles where they awarded three winners with free veterinary care from the Banfield Pet Hospital. 

LOVE IS IN THE AIR

At the Oakland Zoo in California, a white-handed gibbon female named Gladys was introduced to longtime resident male gibbon Nikko. Can we expect adorable baby gibbons in the Spring? We hope so. 

WALKING THROUGH A SUNNY WONDERLAND

Chanua, a two-month-old baby black rhino, enjoys a nice, warm stroll during winter sunshine.

MARINELAND'S NORTH POLE

A playful dolphin leaps in the air next to a man dressed in a Santa Claus costume at Marineland in France. Santa Claus even posed for pictures with the dolphins. Looks like fun!

MERRY MEERKAT CHRISTMAS

At the Taronga Zoo in Sydney, Australia, a meerkat fiddles with a Christmas decoration. Leading up to Christmas, the zoo animals are given Christmas-themed enrichment activities to get them into the holiday spirit! 

BEARY GOOD TREATS

A gorgeous American black bear has some fun with yummy treats that were served to him on a snowman at the Los Angeles Zoo.

BLINDED BY THE ROMAINE

This hilarious picture shows a manatee at the Columbus Zoo in Ohio having a bit of trouble devouring some romaine lettuce. We are sure he was eventually able to successfully eat the difficult veggie. Too funny!

LOKO FOR YOKO

Yoko the chimpanzee shows excitement after receiving a Christmas basket full of goodies at Rio de Janeiro Zoo in Brazil. 

MY, HOW YOU'VE GROWN!

A rhinoceros iguana is measured during the annual animal inventory at Zoo Berlin. Every year, the zoo conducts an inventory which assesses the true number of species and their members, and the state of animal colonies. 

STOP ... BISCUIT TIME

New York pet columnist Sarah Zorn gives her pet dog Rowdy a delicious gingerbread holiday dog biscuit during at a photo shoot at her home in Brooklyn, New York. Zorn not only creates pet recipes for magazines, but she also tests them (with Rowdy's help!). 

CHILLY WINTER MORNINGS

At the Oregon Zoo, Tasul the polar bear chills out during a snowy winter morning. Since the zoo is at an elevation of 670 feet, when Portland gets snow, the zoo is often the first to see it! 

HAPPY NEW YEAR 

Three gorgeous parrots are pictured at the Copán Archeological Park waiting for December 21 to arrive. This marks the day the cycle comes to an end and a new era begins in the Mayan calendar. 

AWAY WE GO

Thousands of tiny crested toad tadpoles begin their 1,800-mile journey from Ohio's Cleveland Metroparks Zoo to Puerto Rico in hopes of boosting the environment's endangered species. 

ANIMAL LEAGUE GALA 

Actress Beth Ostrosky Stern and Dog Whisperer Cesar Millan attend the North Shore Animal League 2012 Awards Gala in New York City at the Waldorf Astoria. 

BULLFROG BEAUTY

Jaws the African bullfrog is shown off by a handler at the Maryland Zoo in Baltimore. What a photogenic froggy! 

NOT SO BAD AFTER ALL

At the San Diego Zoo, a panda cub played around with his bamboo sticks more than he had in previous weeks. He enjoyed gumming it in his mouth — so adorable!

JUST KEEP SWIMMING

Sharks swim around a Christmas Nativity scene that was being set up at the bottom of the Madrid Zoo aquarium. We think they approve! 

CUTE, CUTER, CUTEST

At Moody Gardens in Texas, a small penguin chick recently hatched, making him the third baby this season for parents Ren and Garfield. The first two were born on Thanksgiving Day. What a great year for the zoo! 

HELLO, LADIES

Kashka, a gorgeous male rhino, steps foot into his new home at the Zoo Zlin-Lesna in the Czech Republic. He had been transferred from a Wildlife Park in the U.K. Now, he joins two female rhinos. What a lucky guy!

SWEET LITTLE SUMATRAN

At the Chester Zoo in England, a brand new Sumatran orangutan youngster is pictured with its mother, Subis. The new baby is doing well and is loving cuddling with its mom! 

SANTA'S REINDEER 

In London, England, Santa Claus and his reindeer made an appearance at a Christmas party for sick children at 10 Downing Street. We hope Santa and his antlered friends were able to put smiles on the youngsters' faces. 

PRETTY LITTLE PRAIRIES

Precious little prairie dogs snack on some food as they await treatment at the Animal Medical Center in New York City. 

DASHING THROUGH THE SNOW

At the zoo in Berlin, a young elephant enjoys a stroll through the snow with his mother. 

KOALA FROM THE BLOCK

Jennifer Lopez poses with a friendly koala during a visit to the Wild Life Sydney Zoo in Australia. We don't think the koala realizes how famous his visitor is!

SKATE SWEETIE

Adorable little skates are on display at the Mermaid's Purse exhibit at the Mystic Aquarium in Connecticut. See those little dots that look like eyes? They are actually spiracles that bring water into their gills for respiration. 

PRECIOUS PUGGLE

At the Perth Zoo in Australia, an adorable echidna puggle, Babbin, is shown off to photographers. Babbin is one of two echidna puggles born at the zoo this year. Too precious! 

THIRD TIME'S A CHARM

At the Pukaha Mount Bruce National Wildlife Center in New Zealand, a rare white kiwi chick is already eating on her own. This little gal is only the third white kiwi chick to ever hatch at the zoo.