Hawaii's state mammal is in peril, with sharply declining numbers. Can they beat the odds?
by Rob Parsons |
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A
dozen years ago I met a strapping young man, just out of high school
and working as first mate on a snorkel cruise boat. Much to my
amazement, one of his duties on daily excursions to Molokini was to
discourage a rambunctious teenage monk seal, known for making amorous
advances on unsuspecting tourists.
I had read about "Humpy," as
the seal was dubbed, and his interactions with surprised swimmers,
mainly in the Makena area of South Maui. Agencies responded to the
ongoing incidents by relocating the frisky seal to Kaho'olawe. But
within days, the seal had returned and was frequenting Molokini islet,
with its hundreds of daily snorkelers and divers. While some visitors
were undoubtedly thrilled to encounter the rare pinniped, they may not
have been aware of the dangers associated. To humans, yes, as seals are
known to nip or bite. But much more so to the seal.
EXTREME PERIL
Hawaiian
Monk Seals have swum the oceans for millions of years, even pre-dating
the formation of the main Hawaiian Islands. Now, though federally
protected under the Endangered Species Act, these kama'aina marine
mammals are imperiled, with the long-term survival of the species
uncertain.
Whether federal agencies, marine biologists, state
legislators and volunteers can bolster declining birth rates and
prevent further senseless killings of the docile animals remains to be
seen. The odds appear long. But there is a "glimmer of hope," according
to National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Marine Mammal
Response Coordinator David Schofield.
With a total monk seal
population estimated at just over 1,000, Schofield believes the main
Hawaiian Islands are the key to the species' recovery. "In the
Northwest Hawaiian Islands [where the majority of monk seals reside]
they are in peril, due to multiple factors," said Schofield.
"While
the population on the whole is declining by 4 percent per year, here in
the main Hawaiian Islands, the monk seals seem to be doing very well.
They are fat—the moms are really big," Schofield said in June 2008,
shortly after a bill was signed into law recognizing the Hawaiian monk
seal as Hawaii's official state mammal.
But the following year,
2009, saw the fewest seal pups born in the last decade. Only 119
offspring were counted by NOAA Fisheries biologists, compared to 138 in
2008 and 207 in 2004.
"Every location [in the Northwest
Hawaiian Islands] was down this year," Charles Littnan, lead scientist
with the NOAA Fisheries Hawaiian Monk Seal Research Program told a
Honolulu Advertiser reporter.
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"The biggest problem is poor juvenile survival. Less than one in five pups that are born live to adulthood," Littnan said.
Part
of that poor survival rate is due to competition for food. The
protected waters around the Papahanaumokuakea National Monument are
teeming with other apex predators, including sharks and ulua. At French
Frigate Shoals, Galapagos sharks have been observed ambushing
still-nursing seal pups in waters shallower than a foot. Sharks devour
more than a third of pups born there, said Littnan.
That harsh
food-chain reality has led to a controversial program to reduce shark
populations. The April issue of Environment Hawaii reported, "With
reluctant approval from the environmental and Native Hawaiian
communities, the Land Board unanimously approved a permit to allow the
culling of 20 sharks," at French Frigate Shoals. The one-year permit
would allow for the shooting of sharks seen "pursuing, injuring or
maiming" seals, or patrolling the shorelines when pups are present.
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The
cultural advisory group had not reached consensus on the proposal, and
member Trisha Kehaulani Watson stated, "No one wants to find themselves
in the position we do today. I firmly believe that the future of the
Hawaiian monk seal requires us to take these drastic action[s]."
The
ecosystem imbalances in the Northwest Hawaiian Islands are attributable
to inadequate supervision of lobster and bottom fisheries, dating back
at least a couple decades. Lobster, along with octopus, eel and small
reef fish, are a prime food source for juvenile and adult monk seals.
In 2000, three national environmental groups—Greenpeace, Center for
Biological Diversity and Earthjustice—filed a lawsuit claiming that the
National Marine Fisheries Service had violated the Endangered Species
Act by allowing gross overfishing.
During the 1980s, lobster
boats set more than 1,000 traps nightly, with more than two million
pounds being caught annually. By 1991, lobster stocks had crashed and
have never recovered.
HUMAN KILLINGS
Monk seals have
faced dire threats before and recovered. After being hunted to near
extinction—only 23 seals were counted in 1890—their numbers rebounded
to more than 900 adults by 1960.
Monk seals were slaughtered in
great numbers during the 19th century at the same time the whaling
industry thrived. A sealing and exploring voyage by Captain N.C. Brooks
of the Gambia spent three months in the Leeward Islands during the
summer of 1859, and returned to Honolulu with 240 barrels of seal oil
and 1,500 skins.
It is reported that King Kamehameha IV visited
Nihoa in 1857, officially annexing it for the Hawaiian Kingdom. An
excerpt from the log of the Manuokawai reads, "At 10am went
ashore…About a dozen seal were on shore and the King shot several of
them."
Fast-forward a century-and-a-half. Despite endangered
species status, two female monk seals were shot to death on Kauai last
year, with a third death on Molokai deemed intentional but currently
unresolved.
In May 2009, RK06, a pregnant female known to have
borne five previous offspring, was found shot to death at Pila'a Beach
on Kauai's north shore. A month earlier RK19, a five year old male was
fatally shot and found at Kaumakani on the island's west side.
Last
September, a 78-year old man pleaded guilty, claiming he fired four
shots from his .22-caliber rifle only to scare the mother seal away so
she wouldn't steal fish from the nets he was about to throw in the
ocean. Though his violation of the Endangered Species Act was a
misdemeanor punishable by up to a year in jail and a $50,000 fine, the
man was sentenced to a 90-day jail term and a year of supervised
release. No suspects were charged in the other killing.
The
seriousness of the incidents wasn't lost on state legislators, however.
Kauai Sen. Gary Hooser introduced SB2441, which raises the penalty for
intentionally killing or harming monk seals to a Class C felony, with
up to a $100,000 fine and a 40-year jail term. Rep. Hermina Morita
introduced a similar measure, HB2235, which includes a component that
would place informational kiosks in airports.
Sen. Mike Gabbard
brought forth a pair of bills aimed at informing visitors about monk
seals as well as the beaches and coastal ecosystems. Rep. Denny Coffman
issued a House version that would require flights to Hawaii to carry a
public service video on endangered species.
"Passing this
legislation will send a message that the people of Hawaii will not
stand by and allow individuals to take their anger out on innocent
animals," Hooser said in a statement.
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PROTECTION EFFORTS
As
monk seal pup numbers continue to rise in the main Hawaiian Islands,
with 15 documented births last year, there will be a greater need for
education. "We need to learn coexistence," said Schofield. "More seals
will mean more interaction and more displacement. The main Hawaiian
Islands may provide a foothold for recovery. We're trying to build
capacity for paid positions—island-wide coordinators—and also involve
the community as volunteers."
Nicole Davis works as one of
Schofield's regional coordinators. She maintains a 24-hour hotline,
supervises citizen volunteers and tracks all monk seals on Maui,
monitoring their movements. Her data is reported to NOAA's Pacific
Island Fisheries Science Center, which also deals with emergency
circumstances, such as when a seal is found with a fishhook in its
mouth.
Davis was a primary responder to a newborn seal at Koki
Beach in Hana this year. She helped set up warning tape and monitor the
mother and pup from sunup to sundown, and developed a new team of East
Maui volunteers. "The Maui Marine Mammal Response Program wouldn't be a
success without our partner agencies and awesome volunteers," said an
enthusiastic Davis. "We have such a good network of volunteer
responders, who also provide on-site education and outreach."
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At
the time a pup is weaned, measurements are taken and a flipper tag may
be attached. In the case of the Hana pup, named RO15, a satellite tag
was also attached to track his movements. Though the mother seal
sometimes leaves her pup on its own after weaning, both seals have been
seen in the East Maui area. Another offspring born a couple miles away
did not survive.
Davis ran through the protocol when a seal is
"hauled up," the term for time spent basking on a sandy or cobbled
beach or on lava shoreline. "We set up barrier tape at a distance of
150 feet—more for a mom and pup," she said. "A person should not make
eye contact or loud noises. Don't interact, feed, play with or pet the
seals."
For a person spotting a seal while in the water, she advised, "If the seal approaches you, move away. Head for shore."
Biologist
Bill Gilmartin began studying Hawaiian monk seals in 1978,
investigating die-offs on Laysan Island. He worked with the National
Marine Fisheries Service from 1980 until his retirement in 1995,
serving as a vital member of the Monk Seal Recovery Team (MSRT).
The
MSRT pushed for greater measures to aid survival of seal pups and
launched efforts in the '80s '90s to relocate newly weaned pups,
allowing them to grow and fatten in captivity before returning to the
wild.
In 1994, Gilmartin and his team relocated 21 adult males
to the main Hawaiian Islands to prevent aggressive "mobbing" behavior
during breeding season that sometimes injures or kills females in
estrus.
Following his "retirement" from NMFS, Gilmartin and
fellow scientist Hannah Bernard formed the Hawaii Wildlife Fund in
1996, primarily to address gaps in recovery efforts for endangered
hawksbill turtles and monk seals. Both believe that partnership with
the community us key.
"We've seen an increase of larger,
healthier animals in the main [Hawaiian] Islands," said Gilmartin.
"With that, there will continue to be more on our beaches. More
education will allow for collaboration."
"Monk seals are one of
the canaries in the coal mine," said Bernard. "They are an indicator of
how we have disrupted and altered the overall ocean ecosystem. The
extinction of the Caribbean monk seal happened in our lifetime [last
sighting was in 1952]. We need dramatic intervention to ensure success."
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A PLAN
The
Monk Seal Recovery Team released a white paper in 2007, detailing
threats and trends and issuing a roadmap for species recovery. The
Recovery Plan for the Hawaiian Monk Seal, actually a revision of a 1983
study, has an alarming cover, featuring a monk seal juxtaposed against
a graph showing sharply declining population figures—from 1,400 just a
decade ago to between 1,000-1,100. (In a cruel twist, the juvenile seal
in the photo, photographed during its six-week nursing period on an
Oahu beach, was found three months later, tragically drowned in a gill
net.) To reclassify the species from "endangered" to "threatened" would
require a three-fold increase in the current population, the report
states.
Four key strategies are outlined to move the species
toward recovery. At the top of the list is improving the survival rate
of females, particularly juveniles. This could be achieved through
maintaining and improving conservation and research efforts,
intervening when appropriate, continuing protection from aggressive
males and sharks and removing marine debris.
The recommendations
also urge extensive field presence during breeding season for
monitoring and research and reducing the probability of infectious
disease.
"The big problem," Gilmartin emphasized, "is low
productivity [in the Northwest Hawaiian Islands]. These seals don't
live past a few years of age, don't reach maturity, don't breed. There
are almost no young females reaching reproductive age."
Gilmartin
and others on the MSRT have pushed for help with survival of young
animals in the Northwest Hawaiian Islands, as they did with fatten and
release programs in the 80s and 90s. He said that the California Marine
Mammal Center is doing private fundraising to build a facility at NELHA
on the Big Island for that purpose. Hawaii Wildlife Fund is accepting
tax-deductible donations to support that goal.
Will agency
efforts, private funding, volunteer kokua and community education be
enough? Can monk seals be pulled back from the brink yet again? "I'm
hoping [the population] will stabilize," said a somber Gilmartin, "but
it hasn't yet."
To report Hawaiian monk seal sightings in
Maui County, contact Maui Marine Mammal Response Network Specialist
Nicole Davis: 292-2372 or nicole.davis@noaa.gov. For emergency situations, call the 24-hour marine mammal hotline: 888-256-9840
NOAA Fisheries bi-annual Main Hawaiian Islands Monk Seal Count will take place Saturday, April 17, 10am-1pm. For more information, attend one of the following pre-count meetings:
Monday, April 12, 6:30-7:30pm at the Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale National Marine Sanctuary, Kihei
Saturday, April 10, time & location TBD, Hana
For info call 292-2372 or visit www.monksealmania.blogspot.com