Wild Times

From pygmy hippo Moo Deng to Pesto the penguin, cute creatures did more than just take over the internet in 2024

- CHAD DE GUZMAN

MOO DENG. IT'S A NAME MILLIONS around the world have come to know. She's the most obsessed-over, least controversial celebrity. Her dewy skin, enviable lifestyle of frolicking and feasting, and eminently memeable face have made her an icon of the internet. She's also ... a hippopotamus. Cute creatures going viral is nothing new. Seven years ago, the Cincinnati Zoo wanted TIME to name Fiona the hippo Person—er, Animal?—of the Year. But 2024 seems to be on a different level.

The plump pygmy hippo from Thailand—who was born in July and whose name translates to “bouncy pork”—rose to fame perhaps when she was needed most. “Observing animals, whether online or in person, can be therapeutic in many ways,” University of Washington psychology professor emeritus David Barash tells TIME. Beasts can provide a comforting distraction when people are “depressed by the state of the world.” And distract Moo Deng did.