Neil the Seal

 Neil the Seal is causing havoc at Dunalley here in Tasmania down the south.  Now Neil the Seal was born in Tasmania down on the Peninsular in October 2020, and with no other seals around at all which is unusual,  Mum took off and left Neil after about 3 weeks of nursing  abruptly weeing him and left Neil to fend for himself, so he's not used to having other seals for company.  Because Salem Bay is where he was born in Tasmania, he thinks it's his real home, so he comes home. 😁He came home for his winter 'moult'.  Apparently Neil has done his thing, is now gone till next time.

The Video is curtesy of the Guardian newspaper.

Neil is a Southern Elephant Seal.  He refuses to go back into the sea during these two periods he comes home for his welfare reason and to do his thing in the nature world.  However he disrupts traffic, lies in the middle of the road, pushes boulders over and is destructive.  Of course he is a tourist attraction during these times and people are asked to stay 20 meters away from Neil. He weights about 1,000 kg (1 tonne and about 3 meters long). Neil is also guarded by humans 24/7 as far as I am aware.

There is a lot more I could write about Neil the Seal but there would be a lot of reading, so I have left it, and of course there is much on the internet about him. 

I borrowed these photos.  Where those faint yellow stars are is where Dunnally is.