Field Report: April 2023

The Kauai team logged 303 seal sightings this month (294 in Mar, 249 in Feb, 252 in Jan, 239 in Dec, 243 in Nov). This included 46 individually identified seals.

New:

·       Second Kauai pup of the year was born this past month. Mother is Kauai born RH92, who has become an Oahu seal, even giving birth on Oahu last year. She surprised us by returning to her birth beach this year and giving birth to PK2. The pup is thriving.

·        Juvenile Niihau seal was flipper-tagged as R7AJ on the beach at PMRF, and further trained the PMRF.

Updates:

·       Adult female RKA2 found logging for 5 days at Aliomanu Beach the previous month. We closely monitored and assessed with a pole camera. Head swollen with bite marks on head, neck, and flippers. Suspect dog attack. Successfully administered antibiotics while the seal was logging in the water. Administered a second dose along with pain meds while the seal was hauled out 6 days later. Seal appeared to be recovering. UPDATE: Finally resighted her fully healed and in good health after 5 weeks with no sightings (since the second antibiotic injection).

·       RF30 and PK1, she pup weaned the pup after 39 days of nursing and has remained in natal area. Seal was tagged as RS30, 2 weeks after weaning, somewhate small ax girth of 98 cm, but very healthy and strong.

Program:

·       Keoki’s Paradise restaurant hosted a volunteer appreciation luncheon in Poipu and 35 volunteers attended and enjoyed a free lunch buffet prepared just for them. It was part of volunteer appreciation month and a nice gesture by Keoki’s Paradise.

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Monk Seal Monday #192: Meet RS30

RF30 weaned PK1 at 39 days on April 27th. A week later, he was bleach-marked as V30. Last Friday, he was officially tagged S30 (left flipper) and S31 (right flipper). He will be known in NOAA’s scientific database as RS30. Two weeks after weaning, his axilliary girth measured 98 cm and his length from tip of the nose to tip of the tail was 124 centimeters. He’s lost some weight since RF30 weaned him and as he figures out the good bits to eat in the ocean, but he’s certainly not the smallest weaner of record. At the same time that RS30 was flipper-tagged, he was vaccinated against morbillivirus, a tissue sample collected, and a micro-chip pit tag (much like the kind used with dogs and cats) was inserted. And all that got done in less than five minutes.

Here are a couple videos provided by volunteers illustrating the development of this young Hawaiian monk seal.

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