Neil the Seal, 1,000-Kg Tasmanian Elephant Seal, Demolishes Bollards and Harasses SUV
Updated
Updated · Sydney Morning Herald · Jun 30
Neil the Seal, 1,000-Kg Tasmanian Elephant Seal, Demolishes Bollards and Harasses SUV
2 articles · Updated · Sydney Morning Herald · Jun 30
Summary
Recent footage showed Neil — a five-year-old elephant seal weighing about 1,000 kilograms — ripping out concreted bollards and bothering a parked Toyota LandCruiser during his latest return to Tasmania.
Dr Jane Younger said the behavior fits an adolescent male raised away from a normal seal colony, leaving him without other young males to wrestle and play-fight with onshore.
Neil was born on the Tasman Peninsula and keeps returning twice a year through strong site fidelity; officials from Tasmania’s Marine Conservation Program monitor him because he is already large enough to accidentally kill a person.
Younger said the bigger risk lies ahead: Neil could become more aggressive around age eight, may struggle to find a mate after growing up in isolation, and could eventually reach 4 tonnes.