The 500 kg elephant seal Neil became a star of the Internet
A sea elephant named Neil, who lives in Tasmania, has become famous on the Internet. This large animal weighs about 1300 pounds.
The adventures of this sea elephant are documented on the @neiltheseal22 Instagram account, which has over 63,000 followers. Recently, Neil has become very popular and you can even buy accessories with his image, toys and T-shirts, Yahoo writes.
The account is run by a resident of Tasmania. He constantly introduces readers to Neil's antics and takes videos. They show the seal having fun with traffic cones and demolishing a company's fence in the city of Dunalla.
The account owner decided that he would no longer publish information about Neil's whereabouts to ensure his safety, based on the advice of marine biologists.
At the same time, despite his good-natured appearance, local residents were advised to stay away from the wild animal and respect his personal boundaries to avoid unpleasant situations.
According to media reports, Neil first appeared three years ago, when footage of him playing with traffic cones was recorded, and a photo of Neil sleeping near Hobart was taken.
It is known that Neil was born on the island of Tasman. Biologists from the Marine Conservation Program determined that Neil was a male. Since then, this seal has become a regular visitor to the southeastern coast of the state.
Despite warnings about the dangers of interacting with this large animal, the local population tries to communicate with Neil, and he is happy to receive attention. According to experts, Neil most likely spent a lonely childhood without other young seals to communicate and swim with.
It is emphasized that now Neil has a tracking device on his head, as Neil himself "reported" in his blog.
What is known about sea elephants
Southern elephant seals are the largest of all seals. Males of this critically endangered species can reach 13-16 feet in length and weigh up to 7720 pounds. They are rusty-gray-brown in color, covered with a thick layer of fat, and are the deepest-diving of all seals, preferring to eat squid.
These amazing creatures are known as 'elephant seals' because of their distinctive 'trunk' or proboscis, which they use to amplify their vocalizations. Fast and agile, they can be potentially dangerous if frightened or their habitat disturbed.
According to Tasmanian wildlife officials, at about 10 years of age, Neil should be sent to one of the breeding grounds of sea elephants. Presumably, this could be Macquarie Island, Heard and Maatsuiker.