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Having “hauled out” on a sandy beach in Hawaii, this female monk seal warms herself in the sun.

(photo credit 1.1)

November 2012

Oahu, Hawaii

A kite surfer squinted into the sun. The waves were pretty good that day off the northeastern coast of Oahu (sounds like oh-WAH-hoo) in Hawaii. Suddenly, something caught his eye. There, bobbing in the waves just ahead of him, was a strange sight.

It looked like a monk seal. But this monk seal was green. And it wasn’t moving. It looked like the seal was tangled up in something. The surfer wasn’t sure what was going on, but one thing was clear: This seal was in trouble.

Did You Know?

Hawaiian monk seals get their name from the soft folds of fur around their necks. People used to think these folds looked like the hood on a monk’s robe.

When the surfer reached land, the first thing he did was call the Hawaiian monk seal hotline. The hotline is part of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Fisheries Service. He described what he’d seen to wildlife biologist Tracy Mercer. Tracy is in charge of NOAA’s monk seal search and rescue operations on the main Hawaiian Islands. Since 2002, she’s been working with a team of NOAA scientists, staff, and volunteers to keep track of this endangered population of Hawaiian monk seals. The team also rescues injured seals so they can be treated and returned to the wild. Tracy sent a search team to the spot where the surfer had seen the seal. They found nothing.

Five days later, a NOAA response team volunteer sent photos of a monk seal lying on a beach not far from where the injured seal had first been spotted. The seal was dangerously thin, and it looked green.

Tracy studied the photo. Her heart sank as she read the tag on the monk seal’s flipper: R5AY. She knew this seal. It was Honey Girl, a 17-year-old female. Honey Girl was well known to the NOAA staff and volunteers.

(photo credit 1.2)

Monk seals are native to Hawaii. They aren’t found anywhere else in the world. The northeastern coast of Oahu is known for its big waves and rough water. When storms roll in from the Pacific Ocean, most animals take cover. But the monk seal is built for this rugged environment. It has a sleek, barrel-shaped body and powerful back flippers. It can glide through strong ocean currents and dive deep for food. Ancient Hawaiian legends called the monk seal Ilio holo i ka uaua (sounds like EE-lee-oh HO-lo i COW ah-OO-ah). It means “the dog that runs in rough seas.”

Honey Girl had given birth to seven pups over seven years. Everyone called her a “miracle mom.” She had raised each pup with great care. Now Honey Girl was the one in need of care. Tracy knew she had to save her. She also knew she’d need help to do it.

NOAA’s on-duty marine mammal veterinarian (sounds like vet-er-ih-NAIR-ee-en) answered the call. Dr. Michelle Barbieri (sounds like bar-bee-AIR-ee) knew a lot about monk seals. At first light, she and Tracy began the long drive to the coast. Hours later, they reached the beach and started their search.

Over the next three days, Tracy, Michelle, and a team of volunteers hiked along a 15-mile (24-km) stretch of coastline, searching. Monk seals spend most of their time in the water, but a healthy seal will spend time on land, too. It’s called “hauling out.” The team combed the beaches, hoping to find Honey Girl.

Finally, they saw her. She was drifting in the waves offshore. But she was never close enough to the shore for them to reach her. Tracy and Michelle grew anxious (sounds like ANGK-shuhs). “It’s suspicious when a monk seal does not haul out and is floating or logging on the water’s surface,” said Michelle. “Maybe something is preventing her from coming on shore.” But what could it be?

They got their answer when they found Honey Girl on the beach a few days later, asleep. “We didn’t want to scare her back into the water,” said Michelle. As they approached her quietly, they saw the source of Honey Girl’s problem.

A fishhook the size of Michelle’s palm was lodged into Honey Girl’s cheek. A tangle of razor-sharp fishing line trailed from her mouth. Every time she moved, the line cut deeper into her skin.

Finding Honey Girl solved another mystery, too. Tracy and Michelle discovered why Honey Girl looked green. Her coat was covered with mossy, green algae (sounds like AL-jee).

“Algae grows on most seal hair, but it usually bleaches out from their lying in the sun,” said Michelle. “Honey Girl must have been floating in the water for several weeks.” The sun hadn’t bleached it.

Michelle noticed something else, too. Honey Girl’s ribs and spine were showing. This meant she had not eaten for a very long time.

This worried Michelle. She knew that Honey Girl had recently weaned a pup. She had already lost half of her body weight from nursing her pup. She needed to eat to regain that weight.

It was clear that Honey Girl needed immediate help. There was no way to tell at that moment how much damage the fishing line had done. At least Michelle could trim away some of the line to make things less painful for Honey Girl.

Michelle and Tracy decided to transport Honey Girl to the Waikiki (sounds like WHY-kee-kee) Aquarium. It was the only place on Oahu that treated injured marine mammals.

Honey Girl was hurt, but she was also probably pretty scared, too. The rescue team needed to move carefully but quickly.

Moving an injured monk seal is a tough challenge. Even at half her normal weight, Honey Girl weighed more than 300 pounds (136 kg). The team used a large plank of wood with a handle on the back to gently guide her into a metal cage.

Once Honey Girl was inside the cage, it took six people to lift it onto the back of a truck. Honey Girl opened her eyes but showed little reaction to the people around her. As the truck drove off, everyone was wondering if Honey Girl would make it. Would she ever see the ocean again?