An adorable South American sea lion has made its debut among visitors at the world’s oldest zoo after it was born last week.

Visitors to Schoenbrunn Zoo, located in the city of Vienna, Austria, can now get a sneak peek of the cute female pup after its mum took it out in the open following its delivery on Monday, 17th July.

But despite eagerly waiting for the possibility to interact with and feed the pup, zoo officials said it might take up to eight months before the little one – still dependent on its mum’s milk – can eat raw fish.

Schoenbrunn Zoo curator Simone Haderthauer said in a statement obtained by Newsflash: “For the first few days, mother and cub were in the backstage area.

“Now they can already be seen by visitors in the shallow water area set up especially for this purpose.

“This is where the little one makes its first attempts at swimming. The mother is very experienced and takes good care of her offspring.”

Haderthauer added: “At the moment, the adult animals are not very hungry for mackerel, sprats, etc., either.

“Because the mating season always begins in summer, after the young animals are born.

“And there is hardly any time to eat, especially for the males, who keep a harem.”

South American sea lion pups – born with swimming and diving skills – are native to the western and southeastern coasts of South America.

They are listed as of ‘Least Concern’ on the IUCN’s Red List of Threatened Species, with an overall population of 265,000 animals.