The giant panda team at San Diego Zoo have got their first close look at their much heralded newborn cub.

Footage taken from the den shows panda mother Bai Yun leaving the cub for the first time as she goes for a drink of water. While female pandas generally fast for several days after the birth of a cub, it is not unusual for them to need water.

Staff monitoring the camera zoomed in on the hairless cub before the mother returned to the den to cradle her newborn.

The mother and the cub will be kept away from the public for four to five months. During this denning period, the only way to see the baby panda and its mother will be through the San Diego Zoo's live online video feed, aptly named Panda Cam.

Bai Yun, who is now 20 years old, is the second oldest panda to give birth and has five other cubs.