CAPE TOWN, South Africa — Colombian pop singer Shakira has blamed her Blackberry for sparking a sea lion attack — suggesting the marine mammal mistook the shiny black phone for a fish.
The 35-year-old “Hips Don’t Lie” singer immediately alerted fans to the situation, posting on her Twitter account, “Omg what just happened to me! I was attacked by a sea lion!” before taking to Facebook to provide additional details and photographs in a “special report.”
She ain’t lion! The sea lion that tried to take a bite out of singer Shakira. (Facebook)
Ouch! A cut to the singer’s hand suffered as she escaped the sea lion attack. (Facebook)
In his element: The sea lion swimming. (Facebook)
The incident occurred at the weekend during a holiday in Cape Town, South Africa, according to The Sun.
Shakira, whose full name is Shakira Isabel Mebarak Ripoll, wrote on Facebook Monday that she decided to get closer to a group of sea lions and seals because she thought they were cute, when one suddenly jumped out of the water and came within a foot (30cm) of her.
“[It] looked me in the eye, roared in fury and tried to bite me,” she wrote, adding she was paralyzed by fear and was rescued by her brother, who she dubbed “Super Tony” and credited with saving her life.
“We both got our hands and legs scratched by the rocks while trying to protect ourselves,” she wrote. “I believe what happened is that it confused the shiny reflection of the Blackberry I was taking these pics with, with some sort of fish.”
Since her interaction with the sea lion, Shakira has posted other vacation photographs on Twitter, including her with penguins — which she noted were “definitely friendlier” — and a baboon sitting on her car.