Meet Buffel, the male Southern Elephant Seal who is living his best life in Cape Town. The pic above was taken by one of Buffel’s many fans, Johan Mostert.

According to the Department of Environmental Affairs and Tourism, “Buffel is 4,2m long and weighs around 1 200kg [and] is probably about nine years old”.

So he isn’t a small seal, but he’s still not fully grown, only reaching full adulthood when he turns 10, reports TimesLIVE.

Buffel is currently hanging out on Fish Hoek Beach, where the authorities have cordoned off a private section for him.

He’s on the beach to moult by covering himself in the sand.

Think of it as the Elephant Seal equivalent of a spa day.

“Buffel is healthy and the authorities know about him. He was tagged in 2014 and since then has regularly come ashore around Cape Town,” said Steve Benjamin from Animal Ocean.

Buffel spent three months at Duiker Island in Hout Bay in 2018, and in previous years has done the rounds in Betty’s Bay, Scarborough, Kommetjie and a few other spots.

Here he is chilling out in a pic by @marianoliver on Instagram:

Buffel’s star treatment at the beach isn’t just a kindness, because he forms part of a species of seal that was almost wiped out at the end of the last century.

Thanks to conservation efforts, however, the population is now back up to 700,000, according to Travelwild Expeditions.

They usually moult with their colonies, but it appears Buffel got separated from his community a few years ago and the rest of them moult near Marion Island almost 2,000km away. But, like the rest of his pack, he is “fasting” at the moment, living off his blubber while his skin slowly sheds.

Folks in the Deep South are loving Buffel – just look how popular the #buffel hashtag is on Instagram.

Once his moulting ends, he’ll return to the sea. In the meantime, the authorities have asked that if you want to visit Buffel, you respect his space, keep your distance, keep the noise down and keep your dogs on a leash.

Let Buffel do his thing in peace.

[source:timeslive]