Heidi the cross-eyed opossum is the latest creature to rocket from Germany's front pages to international recognition, with her bright, black eyes turned toward her pointed pink nose.

Since the first photos were published last month, the animal from the Leipzig Zoo has attracted more Facebook followers than Chancellor Angela Merkel - more than 110,000 by today.

Steffen Damm, a media professor at Berlin Free University, said humans cannot resist such "cute" animals, because they represent our lost innocence and "remind us of our lost connection to nature."

Heidi fills a hole on front pages left by the growing-up of Knut, Berlin's orphaned polar cub, and the death of Paul, the prescient octopus who correctly predicted the outcome of the 2010 World Cup.

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