A seal lion has been captured on video grabbing a little girl by her dress and pulling her into the water to her family's horror.

The footage shows tourists excitedly watching the animal swimming closer to the pier after it surfaced from the water at Steveston Fisherman Wharf in Richmond, Canada.

A young girl, who looks fascinated by the aquatic animal, gets closer to the water and goes to sit on the edge of the pier.

But suddenly, the animal jumps up, bites the girl’s dress and drags her into the water.

As she falls backwards, onlookers are heard screaming in surprise and panic.

A man, who is believed to be a family member, immediately jumps into the water to pull the girl out and she walks away more shocked than harmed.

The incident was over in seconds but Michael Fujiwara, who was filming the sea lion swimming in the harbour, captured the entire scene.

Speaking to the Vancouver Sun, Mr Fujiwara said: “The sea lion actually attracted a lot of attention from the visitors there, including the young girl.