Hawaiian Monk Seal

The Hawaiian monk seal, Monachus schauinslandi, is a critically endangered earless seal that is endemic to the Hawaiian Islands, known to the native Hawaiians as 'Ilio-holo-i-ka-uaua, or "dog that runs in rough waters."

Its common name derives from its round head covered with short hairs, giving it the appearance of a medieval friar. The name may also reflect the fact that it lives a solitary existence relative to other species that collect in large colonies. Hawaiian...
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The Hawaiian monk seal, Monachus schauinslandi, is a critically endangered earless seal that is endemic to the Hawaiian Islands, known to the native Hawaiians as 'Ilio-holo-i-ka-uaua, or "dog that runs in rough waters."

Its common name derives from its round head covered with short hairs, giving it the appearance of a medieval friar. The name may also reflect the fact that it lives a solitary existence relative to other species that collect in large colonies. Hawaiian monk seals are the most primitive living members of the Family Phocidae, having separated from other true seals perhaps 15 million years ago.

Mature Hawaiian monk seals feature a gray pelage, or coat, which weathers to a brown shade. Juvenile Hawaiian monk seals are silver with creamy white stomachs, chests, and throats. Pups are black and woolly with fuzzy short hair. Newborns are clad in a black natal fur. Adult females tend to be larger than males and can weigh 400 to 600 pounds (180 to 270 kg) pounds and 8 feet (2.4 m) feet in length. Pups average 30 to 40 pounds (14 to 18 kg) at birth and 40 inches (1.0 m) in length. Life expectancies are 25 to 30 years.

The Hawaiian monk seal is among the most endangered of all seal species, although its cousin species the Mediterranean Monk Seal (M. monachus) is even rarer, and the Caribbean Monk Seal (M. tropicalis), last sighted the 1950s, was officially declared extinct in June 2008.

The population of Hawaiian monk seals is in decline. In 2008, it is estimated that only 1,200 individuals remain. It is listed as critically endangered. The Hawaiian monk seal was officially designated as an endangered species on November 23, 1976 and is now protected by the Endangered Species Act and the Marine Mammal Protection Act. It is illegal to kill, capture or harass a Hawaiian monk seal.

To raise awareness for the species' plight, the Hawaiian monk seal was declared Hawai_i's official State Mammal on June 11, 2008.
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