Maui monk seal receives medical attention after showing signs of distress

When members of the Maui community noticed that a yearling Hawaiian monk seal was losing significant weight and becoming lethargic, they sounded the alarm.

“The community called the hotline and let us know that his body condition didn’t look too good, and it actually took four weeks before we saw that he was losing quite a bit of weight,” said Frankie Koethe, the Hawaiian monk. seal recovery coordinator for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

“You can see it in the shape of his body. Monks should normally be quite plump, and he actually showed some thinning and we could see his ribs and bones when he was breathing,” Koethe said.

She said the seal, known as RS52, also became extremely lethargic. He was born last year on Lāna’i.

NOAA works to protect critically endangered species. In the case of RS52, this meant taking immediate action.

With the help of volunteers and partner organizations, employees located the seal.

“Hawaiian monk seals are already very vulnerable, and at a young age, like RS52, which is just a year old, they are even more vulnerable. It was truly because of the community that we were able to get RS52 the care he needed and transfer him to the Ke Kai Ola Monk Seal Hospital at the Marine Mammal Center in Kona,” Koethe explained.

The seal was given a ride aboard a U.S. Coast Guard helicopter to the facility in Hawaii. There, RS52 is tested to determine the best care for his recovery.

“The end result will hopefully be a happy one where we release him and he can be a wild seal again and do his thing,” she said.

With fewer than 2,000 Hawaiian monk seals left in the state, Koethe said it is crucial to ensure their health.

“Each individual seal is so important for the recovery of the population. There are only 1,600 left. And so when we look at the recovery of the species, we especially look at our young seals, which can play a major role in the recovery and live a long life.”

That work is paying off.

“We have had a population increase of about 2 to 3% per year since 2013,” she said.

Koethe said this is in large part due to interventions like RS52’s with the help of NOAA’s partner organizations like the Marine Mammal Center, the Department of Land and Natural Resources and community volunteers.

“About 30% of the population growth is due to the interventions we’ve done with NOAA Fisheries,” she said.

Sightings of monk seals can be reported to the NOAA Marine Wildlife Hotline at (888) 256-9840.