Sea lion takes tour of coastal Australian town

Aug. 1 (UPI) -- A sea lion or large seal was caught on camera touring a coastal Australian town after turning up on a confused resident's doorstep.

The animal, variously reported as a sea lion or large seal, was first spotted about 10 p.m. on Monday outside Kirby Carrison's house in Port MacDonnell, near Adelaide.

Carrison said her family's dogs were the first ones to be aware of the unusual visitor.

"My husband went to check what was going on and he came back saying 'bring your camera you're not going to believe this,'" Carrison told The Advertiser. "I heard this noise in the driveway and there was a massive sea lion, we were in shock, we just couldn't believe it."

The sea lion eventually abandoned the Carrison home and set off on an overnight tour of the town.

Community ranger Dale Millar was contacted by locals and set out in the morning to return the sea lion to the beach.

A video shows Millar using a wheeled trash bin to chase the sea lion back toward the water.

"It probably took about 1.5 hours to get him back in the sea, because they had to stop a few times to let him catch his break," said Paul Mullen, owner of the local Periwinkles Cafe.