Now that's a big baby!

My friend Eric, who lives in Portland, showed me this video of the Oregon Zoo's gorgeous and very playful eight-month-old and 1,005 pound baby elephant, Samudra. The young Asian elephant, who is the first third-generation elephant to be born in the United States, weighed a whopping 286 pounds at birth. He could weigh anywhere between 6,000 and 14,000 pounds when he's a fully grown adult. Asian elephants reach their maximum size when they are 25 years old. Their average lifespan is 45 years. 

Learn some more interesting facts about Asian elephants here and read the updates about Samudra's life story here.