There’s a new addition to the Smithsonian National Zoo — a baby seal lion was born earlier this week.
The zoo said in a statement Friday that the pup was born Sunday night to 14-year-old Calli, who is now a mother of three, and 11-year-old father Jetty, who has since been moved to the Queens Zoo.
Zookeepers are letting the pair bond by themselves, away from the American Trail exhibit that’s their home, so it’ll be a while before the keepers know whether it’s a boy or a girl, so the naming process can begin.
Before the pup goes public, the zoo said it first has to continue to develop — it’s said to be doing well with nursing, movement and vocalizing — and then it has to be introduced to Summer, Sydney and Catalina, the other three sea lions in the American Trail exhibit.
Calli will make the call on when it’s time for all of these steps, the zoo said; the pup’s debut will probably be in late summer.
The zoo figured out that Calli was pregnant April 10.
