On Monday, the 30th of May last year, the darkness of the underground world and the light of the world of excited fans witnessed the birth of the first baby dragon.

In January 2016, a fairy tale became reality: the news that the eggs of dragon's offspring had been laid spread around the world.

Ever since the eggs were discovered in the cave in January, there has been renewed interest in visiting it, with thousands of tourists queuing up to get a glimpse of the unique phenomenon.

In total, 64 eggs were laid by a female olm in the aquarium of the cave, but only about 22 were hatched. These hatchlings are a huge deal, because olms only lay eggs once or twice a decade, despite their 100-year lifespans. In the wild, scientists estimate that on average, only two baby olms successfully hatch from every 500 eggs produced.

The baby olm that just hatched will take roughly 15 years to reach maturity - a small amount of time, compared to their century-long average lifespan. They have evolved the ability to smell and feel for food in their nearby surroundings without eyesight. And for now they're doing quite well.

The team in Slovenia hopes that the new olms will help them understand more about the strange species, such as how they achieve such a long life.

May 31, 2017 Living photo: Postojna cave

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