Ahhhh...hard to believe that amidst the splashing and laughing and playful antics surrounding Waimea Bay on the North Shore of Oahu that there would be a Hawaiian Monk Seal bathing in the sun. Oblivious to all going on around it, this Endangered Species is taking advantage of a beautiful tropical day to catch a tan (haha) and few winks.
Where the population of the Monk Seal used to be high, it has decreased 11% per year since 1989 and is the MOST endangered marine mammal in the United States. One of the main factors for their decrease in population is contributed to discarded fish nets and lines that the monk seals get entagled in. Another contributing factor is that the Laysan and Lisianski male seals are attacking the females and the deaths are up to 10 to 11 seals on Laysan alone which is 4% of the island's populations. READ MORE HERE>
Lately, they seem to be all over our islands...stopping to rest on any old beach. Just remember though, Under the Marine Mammal Protection Act and Endangered Species Act it is considered a violation and called "harassment" if you are walking along the beach and a Monk Seal lifts its head and vocalizes or retreats into the water because you disrupted it. WOW.
In any event, they are just the cutest yet most wonderous creatures you would lay eyes on. My daughter was out at Waimea Bay beach two weeks ago and lo and behold there was this creature (yes, she GAVE ME the picture :) and she snapped me a shot.
Everyone can help respect the Hawaiian Monk Seal by:
- Respecting the privacy of the seal.
- Stay at least 150 feet away from the seal
- Keep dogs on a leash so they do not disrupt or attack seals.
- Fishing by being seal friendly
- Report all monk seal sightings by calling NOAA hotline numbers. (Oahu call 220-7802; Neighbor Islands call toll free 888-256-9840)
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© 2008 Celeste "Sally" Cheeseman's Hawaii Real Estate and Relocation Blog. All rights reserved.
Celeste "Sally" Cheeseman is a Realtor-Associate® and Certified Residential Specialist (CRS) with Century 21 Liberty Homes in Mililani, Hawaii. With a sharp understanding that a listening ear is the key to a client's needs she serves the island of Oahu (Honolulu County) and all Hawaii Military Relocations, Hawaii Retirees, Hawaii Job Transfers and Hawaii Residents, Home Buyers and Sellers.
© 2007-2012 Celeste "Sally" Cheeseman's Hawaii Real Estate and Relocation Blog.
All rights reserved.
Sis - "In any event, they are just the cutest yet most wonderous creatures you would lay eyes on." I agree. Seals, in general, intrigue me. I trust this very post will help make some sort of difference.
Hey Lil Bro: They have such cute heads yeah?
Sally it is a shame when any form of life is nearing the point of being extinct, hopefully they have taken the necessary steps needed to make sure that the Monk Seals are around for many more years.
George: I'm sure they are George.
Sally- Dori did a nice job on the photo...I didn't know they were endangered....thanks for the info.
Aloha Sally,
What a nice post and I do hope other respect these and other creatures. I think I mentioned once before about an experience I observed an unkind tourist and asea tortoise while snorkeling in HI.
Interesting info, even for us on the East Coast and no ties to Hawaii. Tell your daughter "great photo!"
Sally, hopefully the "people" will respect these animals as they come out on the beach.
Kathy: Yup...and yes she did :)
Lynda: Yeah, I remember your story.... go figure why people taunt these creatures. Can you imagine how they treat other people?
Margaret. I'm sure they have endangered animals all over the east coast! I'll tell her!
Gary: They did catch a tourist (by way of his You Tube video) who was here and upsetting a monk seal.... laughing and everything. He wasn't laughing when the feds showed up :)
Hi Sally, A wonderful article and well presented. I hope people read this and now know if they didn't before to leave this creatures alone.
I love it when Monk Seals show up along the shore on Maui. I have had a few sneak up on me while I was surfing and scare the daylights out of me.
Wow Sally! Very awesome picture & story..thanks for sharing it! It is a cool looking animal!
Sally, it is too bad that people discard old fishing nets and other trash in the ocean.
OMG they are adorable. As a kid I always wanted a seal as a pet... told my mom it could live in the bath tub. I have to say I certainly threw my share of hissy fits when the constant answer was "NO NO NO"
Sally.....wonderful post. Last time we were in Kauai, we swam with seals an dolphins in a little cove. They were about that size. I hope this post touches one person over there that will now have more respect and honor their space. We can see these trends reverse....hoping for that!
Hopefully people will read this and follow it. Some people just don't care.
Sally-this makes me so sad and the reality our planet is changing. It freaks me out at times..I think humans need to remember we share this planet with other life forms.
Sally - thanks for the information! I knew NOTHING about monk seals until I read your post!
Sally, I am always amazed and jealous that you get to see such a variety of wildlife. We have ours too on the east coast, I just wish we had the variety. I am happy you have brought this to the attention of your readers. I hope we can make a difference.
Aaww. He/She looks so sweet laying there in the sun. And yet, there's something lonely about that photo as well. I guess that's a perfect depiction of the situation.
Sally - great photo of the seal. I hope the tourists and people stay away from the seal. My daughter (she is a lifeguard) had a baby seal come up on the beach, and kids were running at it. She told them to stop and they apparently did - however sometimes common sense is just lacking!