Residents in Dunalley, Tasmania have been dealing with a 1,300-pound visitor aptly nicknamed "Neil the Seal." The hefty interloper has been causing headaches on roadways and at residences, much to the delight of the rest of the world. The elephant seal has grown quite the following online, but given his surly demeanor, we suspect he would be as unbothered by the newfound fame as he is to virtually everything else he encounters.
Case in point, last month Neil—who has his own Instagram page—made headlines after taking a nap in front of one woman's car, preventing her from getting to work.
She initially thought someone was breaking into her car when she was awoken just before 6:30 a.m., but upon investigation, found him on her front deck. "I looked out my bedroom window and, nope, there is Neil looking up right at me," the woman told a local news outlet.
TikTok user Jason Howlett has also been documenting Neil's interaction with locals, with some of the videos racking up millions of views. In some, the mischievous mammal interferes with the very traffic cones and reflector poles placed on roadways to keep him safe, and in others, he tussles with the local fuzz.
"Police vs. Neil the Seal. Neil and this police officer know each other really, really well. They have a love-hate relationship," Howlett explains in one video, below, in which a police cruiser attempts to move Neil out of the road by honking, and then blaring its alarm.
@jasonhowlett666 #policevsseal #trouble #backtosea #neiltheseal
♬ original sound - Jaycee
In other video, Neil displays his trademark ambivalence to being told he's trespassing on private property, offering up an indifferent bark at the cameraman. "Neil, someone lives here mate," he's told, without a single care in the entire world.
@jasonhowlett666 ♬ original sound - Jaycee
Neil's antics have likewise spilled over onto X, formerly Twitter, racking up views of 12 million or more. People just can't get enough of him!
i am on neil the seal tik tok. neil has been terrorizing a small town in tasmania and i can’t get enough pic.twitter.com/hxifB4gLDl
— gia (@giamariano5) December 13, 2023
Just learned that the people of Tasmania are being harassed by a 600kg elephant seal named Neal. He likes to nap under cars and on the road. pic.twitter.com/7AlLcedcqf
— ashley fairbanks (@ziibiing) December 13, 2023
But while Neil is by all accounts a hefty boy, he's still just a pup, as adult males can grow to upwards of 8,000 pounds. And that's all the more reason authorities want to protect him.
According to the Department of Natural Resources and Environment Tasmania, there are only nine records of southern elephant seal pups born in Tasmania between 1985-2022, and of those nine just five are known to have successfully weaned. Neil was born in Salem Bay in 2020, and was tagged on each tail flipper just prior to weaning so wildlife officials can keep tabs on him.
The reason Neil has been making such a splash lately, so to speak, is because elephant seals come to shore to rest for up to four to five weeks after spending extended periods foraging at open sea. However, the agency notes that the seals should not be disturbed during this time, as they may be dangerous if approached and also risk becoming habituated to people, compromising their long-term survival.
But in Neil's case, he doesn't seem to be leaving people much of an option.
