As many decry the level of anger and political vitriol rampant on social media, places such as Facebook also are confronted with another plague. I’m talking about “cute” pictures of hedgehogs and kittens, puppies and infants, wide-eyed otters and baby bears.

Just how much adorableness can we stand?

One heckuva a lot, it seems.

So, the folks at PBS have thrown in the towel and joined a gazillion Instagram addicts with “Animal Babies: First Year on Earth” (7 p.m., TV-G, check local listings). This ambitious three-part series takes a globe-spanning look at infant hyenas in the African wild, baby Arctic foxes, mere month-old seals, toddling monkeys making their way in Sri Lankan cities, and, yes, that mother of all cuteness: baby elephants barely able to walk.

You might need an insulin shot after watching this.

In its defense, “Babies” does step back from the honey pot on occasion to discuss professionals and their process. We meet the photographers and videographers behind these aww!-inspiring scenes.

But even they’re not immune to the goo-goo talk. At one point a veteran cameraman looks at a baby elephant and gushes, “Look, they’re just like us!”

No, they are not. They’re elephants! They don’t watch clips of human babies in maternity wards and coo. They’re not on Facebook saying “Ooh!” or “Awww!” They’re not like us at all.

• Mixing the cute and cuddly with the downright strange, “Magical Land of Oz” (9 p.m., PBS, TV-PG, check local listings) explores the peculiar creatures and climate of Australia. Separated from the rest of the world for some 45 million years, every bird, kangaroo and blade of grass evolved in a way separate and distinct from those on other continents. In many ways, visiting Australia or watching “Oz” is similar to visiting another planet without leaving our own.

• “Jay Leno’s Garage” (9 p.m., CNBC, TV-PG) returns. The former “Tonight Show” host now is entering his fifth season of showing off his car collection and those of his showbiz buddies.