Endangered Hawaiian Monk Seal

Ho'okipa Beach ~ Maui, Hawaii

November 20, 2002

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This mature female monk seal has been given the Hawaiian name, "makana" by the community, meaning "gift."

'ilio-holo-i-ka-uaua is the name used to describe the Hawaiian monk seal. Literally it means, "the dog that runs in the rough (seas)". These seals get their common name "monk seals" because of their bald appearance, solitary habits and a fold of skin behind their heads which resembles a monk's hood.

Monk seals, although totally protected, remain one of the most endangered of all seals. It is estimated that fewer than 1500 Hawaiian monk seals exist today. The Hawaiian monk seal was officially designated endangered November 23, 1976 and is protected by the Endangered Species Act and the Marine Mammal Protection Act. It is illegal to kill, capture or harass monk seals. Most of them inhabit the tiny islands and atolls which lay to the northwest of the main Hawaiian islands. In recent years, however, monk seals are being sighted around the main islands with increasing regularity.

Monk seals feed largely on fish, eels, octopus, and lobster which they usually catch at night. In the daylight hours the seals spend much of their time sleeping. When on land, they may look lethargic, sick or even dead. Actually, the seals come ashore to get their much needed rest and should not be disturbed or approached.

Lifespan:
Life expectancy is 25 to 30 years.

Average Length:
Females grow slightly larger than males and display more variation in weight. Adult females range between seven and eight feet while adult males measure approximately seven feet at maturity. Newborn pups are 30 to 40 inches in length.

Average Weight:
300 to 400 pounds for adult males and 400 to 600 pounds for females (depending on reproductive state); 30 to 40 pounds for newborn pups.

Distribution:
The three species of monk seals are widely separated by geographic region: Mediterranean (critically endangered), Caribbean (thought to be extinct) and Hawaiian (endangered).

Mediterranean monk seals are found in the Aegean Sea, along the Mediterranean coast of Morocco, along the Algerian coast of Tunisia and in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Hawaiian monk seals are normally found on the leeward (southwest) sides of the northwestern Hawaiian islands, and occasionally sighted in the main Hawaiian islands. In June 1997, the first birth on Maui was recorded.

Natural History:
The thickness of monk seal blubber is comparable to that of seals living in frigid climates. Monk seals keep cool on hot, windless days by lying on damp sand with light ventral pelage exposed at the water's edge and by making wallows into cool sand layers.

Monk seals normally don't stay on dry, hot, upper beach levels except during cool, windy or cloudy weather. Seals are also very inactive when ashore. Their respiration includes long periods of breath-holding, and the heart ratio that accompanies holding their breath is low. These behaviors result in low levels of metabolic heat production and are excellent natural adaptations to heat exposure.

The three species of monk seal are part of the family Phocidae. Monachus is the genus, and it contains the most primitive of all seals. Monk seal ancestors originated in the North Atlantic Ocean at a very early date. The Hawaiian monk seal became separated from the Atlantic-Caribbean members of the genus as early as 15 million years ago.

Perhaps because of their primitiveness, monk seals seem far more sensitive than other phocids to human intrusion of their environment. Pregnant females and mothers with nursing young appear greatly upset when approached.

These disturbances may cause increased deaths among Hawaiian monk seal pups. Monk seals are solitary, both in the water and onshore. When loose groups form on beaches, they gather because the local environment conditions are favorable. Except for mothers with pups, resting seals avoid bodily contact with each other.

Monk seals can dive to at least 500 feet. The seals remain underwater for as long as 20 minutes while foraging (searching for food).

Status:

Monk seal species have shown alarming population declines in recent years due to the rapid spread of human activity to even the most remote and isolated areas. Many monk seals were clubbed to death for meat, oil and their skin. In Hawaii, these factors have contributed to the seal's decline:
death from predation by sharks
lower pup survival as the result of human disturbances
ciguartera intoxication
entanglement in fishing nets and debris

Feeding:
Monk seals feed on fishes and invertebrates both within atoll lagoons and in deeper water offshore. Common foods for monk seals are spiny lobster, eels (except conger and moray), flatfish, small reef fish, larval fish and octopus. Monk seals are also assumed to prey on pelagic (open ocean) species, but only because the monk seal is known to travel long distances in the open ocean.

Monk seals may eat as much as ten percent of their body weight in a day. They sometimes spend many days at sea before returning to the islands where they sleep and digest their food.