Keepers at the Central Coast park first met Cinnamon when they checked Coco’s pouch in early August to see a tiny joey clinging onto mum’s teat. It was only this week that she took her first ‘steps’ and Cinnamon has quickly become one of the most popular animals at the sanctuary.

The tiny joey, known for its rounded fluffy ears and big smile, will now play an important role in the conservation breeding program to ensure the protection of quokkas.

The zoo keepers were delighted to find Cinnamon's parents Coco and Basil getting very comfortable together in March, after just one year at the park.

The status of the species continues to be listed as "vulnerable" on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, while Australian mammals have the worst extinction rate in the world.

"The quokka's notoriety worldwide is important as quokkas have reduced in great numbers in southwestern Australia due to feral animals like foxes and cats," the park's general Manager Tim Faulkner said in a statement.

Thanks to their large and cheeky grins often pictured in selfies, the Australian mammal has been lovingly dubbed the happiest animal in the world.

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