Sea lion wows tourists by writing 'dragon' for Chinese New Year

AFP/Getty

A super-cute sea lion has won the hearts of tourists by writing the Chinese symbol for 'dragon' as part of the new year celebrations.

The animal, called Jay, was helped by his trainer as he skilfully painted out the word with a large brush at the Hakkeijima Sea Paradise aquarium in Yokohama, Tokyo.

The symbol is particularly relevant as 2012 is the Year of the Dragon across China, Japan, and other parts of Asia.

AFP/Getty

The sea lion is not the first to attempt Chinese calligraphy - in January 2011, an eight-year-old seal called Leo impressed the crowds by writing 'rabbit' for the traditional celebration of the animal, according to the Metro.

But his Jay's writing as good as an elephant's painting? Leave your thoughts below...

See how animals across the UK celebrated Christmas:

%VIRTUAL-Gallery-141908%


Sign up to our weekly newsletterFollow us on TwitterBecome a fan on Facebook