Seal on Tas road causes traffic chaos

A curious seal has sparked chaos in Launceston after hauling itself onto a highway and blocking traffic.

Police and Parks and Wildlife Service officers were called to a major intersection of the East Tamar Highway on Friday afternoon, where the creature was splayed across a lane.

"It crawled through the barrier and decided to rest on the highway, where it caused a bit of chaos and disruption," Parks and Wildlife regional manager Stan Matuszek told AAP.

Police initially thought the seal was injured, but Mr Matuszek said that was not the case.

"They moult at this time of the year, and they have a behavioural trait that makes them froth at the mouth and makes them look as though they are injured but actually, they're not," he said.

The seal was escorted back to the nearby Tamar River. The river mouth is a popular area for seal rookeries.