A young female Hawaiian monk seal pup found abandoned Monday during a NOAA monk seal survey of Niihau has been transported to The Marine Mammal Center’s Ke Kai Ola facility in Kailua-Kona.
The pup, named Kilo, was emaciated and would likely have died without intervention, according National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration officials. Shortly after finding the pup, the plan was devised to transport the seal to the Kona-based a monk seal rehabilitation facility operated by The Marine Mammal Center.
The Robinson family, which owns Niihau, and Niihau Ranch staff were supporting the monk seal survey and helped with the first critical step by transporting the pup to Kauai via helicopter. They also gave the young seal a name, Kilo.
Once on Kauai, Michelle Barbieri, a veterinarian for the NOAA Hawaiian Monk Seal Research Program and The Marine Mammal Center, assessed the pup and worked to stabilize it. The pup was severely dehydrated, malnourished and likely anemic, but still showed a remarkable amount of energy. The first action was to start rehydrating the seal while finalizing transport plans.
“It’s a really good thing that the team was there to find this seal. She was in dire need of supportive care and would not have made it much longer in the wild,” said Barbieri.
NOAA contacted the U.S. Coast Guard to request air transport assistance on Monday afternoon. The C-130 Hercules airplane crew from Coast Guard Air Station Barbers Point, Oahu, received the seals at Lihue Airport and transported them to the Kona International Airport on Tuesday afternoon.
Once at Ke Kai Ola, the pup was weighed, measured and given a full physical examination. Veterinary staff and trained volunteers gave the pup electrolytes through a stomach tube, and will continue to do so at least four times per day.
“The tube feedings will start to include blended whole fish in the next 24 hours, as this pup is in dire need of calories. But we have to get her rehydrated first,” said Deb Wickham, operations manager at Ke Kai Ola. Blood samples will be collected and analyzed Thursday.
The pup is in guarded condition but experts are optimistic that she will be able to make a full recovery and be released into the wild in a few months.
In its first year of operation, Ke Kai Ola has rehabilitated eight young monk seals from the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands. Six have been successfully returned to the wild and the remaining two will be headed home this weekend. Kilo is the seal from the main Hawaiian Islands to arrive at the hospital for rehabilitation.
There are currently about 1,100 monk seals left in Hawaii and each individual female seal is important to help ensure the future of the species.
