HER name owes more to science fiction than anything else, but this tiny tapir is out of this world in her own right.

Shadow, named after a character in the hit 1990s American science fiction series Babylon 5, made her debut at Chester Zoo on December 28, weighing about five kilos.

All of the zoo’s new-born tapirs and capybaras get their names from the TV series.

With her distinctive humbug stripes, Shadow is the sixth surviving baby tapir born to mum Jennifer and dad Cuzco.

Both parents, with Shadow’s big brother Zak who was born in August 2006, are proving to be attentive to their new charge.

Shadow and her family are now on show at the zoo.