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The original was posted on /r/todayilearned by /u/RealisticBarnacle115 on 2024-11-17 17:07:29+00:00.

Original Title: TIL Tama-chan, a male bearded seal spotted in 2002 in Tokyo’s Tama River. He was granted honorary residency registration because of his massive publicity and this sparked protests from foreign residents over the fact that such registration was only open to Japanese citizens.