Residents of Dunalley, a small town in Tasmania, Australia, have been met with an unusual problem in recent weeks. A playful seal, who has been lovingly named Neil, is paying them frequent visits and creating chaos.
Neil made the entire town his home and is acting like it. There have been videos of him blocking the road, sleeping on people’s porches, and knocking off fences.
While the locals might experience a bit of inconvenience because of Neil, they actually don’t seem to mind him at all. As a matter of fact, they are even doing their best to make his time on the land more comfortable.
On the other hand, the internet simply adores Neil. Someone made a TikTok account for him that showcases all of seal’s adventures. He already has 675K followers while his videos received close to 12 million likes.
According to a report from the Canberra Times, Neil was born in Salem Bay in 2020. He has already made headlines earlier after being evicted from a beach resort for causing havoc.
While Dunalley residents don’t mind Neil’s presence, the experts warn that humans should be socializing with him as he can be dangerous if provoked. Also, it is best for his survival in the wild that he doesn’t get too familiar with humans.
“We want to see Neil reach adulthood and beyond safely, so it’s critical he doesn’t get used to being near humans,” Marine Conservation Program wildlife biologist Sam Thalmann noted.
@nieltheseal #morningfun #mischiefthemermaid #nieltheseal ♬ original sound – Neil the Seal 🦭
