Like plenty of local boys before him, Neil has come home to the stretch of Australian coast where he was born. Unlike most of them, he trails fame, fans and property damage in his wake. He is also a 1,000 kg (2,200lb) elephant seal.
In June, the bellowing and blubbery five-year-old mammal hauled himself onto land for his twice-yearly tour of beachside towns in southern Tasmania state after months of feeding at sea. That is posing problems now that he weighs as much as a small car and has a social media following more than double Tasmania’s human population.
His rampage through local infrastructure has claimed bent traffic bollards, a sign warning the public about seals, and a fence that did not survive Neil’s attempt to vault it. The rest of the time he lies placidly anywhere he likes, which is sometimes the middle of the road, bringing towns he visits to a standstill.
But officials say their biggest concern is that Neil’s popularity could lead to ill-advised human-seal encounters that are dangerous for both sides.
Neil, the only male elephant seal to visit Tasmania in years, has commanded an enthralled TikTok following of 1.4 million – in part because he acts like kind of a jerk. During this visit to shore, his 12th, his crimes have included picking fights with parked cars and smashing through barriers erected to keep him off roads.