Hawaii senator urges education after monk seal attack
HONOLULU (KHON2) — Hawaii Sen. Brian Schatz said federal authorities need to do more to educate visitors about our native animals – namely the Hawaiian monk seal, after a video has gone viral, showing a man throwing a large rock at a monk seal in Lahaina.
Both visitors and kamaaina flocked to Kaimana Beach to check out 15-year-old Hawaiian monk seal Kaiwi and her brand new pup, believed to have been born on Sunday. Experts said after swimming all day, they need time and space to rest, which is why much of the beach is fenced off.
“Mama needs her rest,” said Beth Ketrick, a visitor from Texas. “She does.”
“I think this is a good thing because it really does have the monk seal as pure as it can be for nature,” said Luke Reddog, beachgoer.
“Did know about the turtles, but not the seals,” said Beth Ketrick. “Think it’s more of a common sense issue and respect issue,” said Mike Ketrick. “Don’t get near the wildlife.”
But after this video showing a man appearing to throw a rock at a Hawaiian monk seal in Lahaina on Wednesday, Hawaii Sen. Brian Schatz is asking if visitors really know that.
“Having that incident where she might be terrified of coming back makes me a little frustrated,” said Cydney Johnson, Waikiki Aquarium monk seal team. “She’s a staple of that area. And just the fact that somebody threw a rock at an animal that was minding its own business. It wasn’t doing anything. Just makes me really upset.”
Schatz wrote an open letter to the administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the agency in charge of protecting our waters. He states this alarming incident shows we need to do more to educate the 10 million visitors we welcome to Hawaii each year, and ensure that NOAA has the capacity and resources to conserve the habitats of the Hawaiian monk seal, and enforce their federal protections.
“I think people, when they get to come here, it’s once in a lifetime, and they wanna take that memory with them, and some people are just selfish, and they don’t care about the consequences,” said Mike Ketrick.
Hawaiian monk seals are an endangered species, so they are protected by both state and federal laws. Anyone caught trying to hurt, harass, capture or kill one can face some stiff penalties. Under state law, violators face up to five years in prison and fines up to $50,000.
“Oh, fully prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law,” said Johnson. “We need to start prosecuting, otherwise people are going to continue to mess with these animals.”
Officials said the suspect in the Lahaina incident is from Seattle and has not been charged at this time.
Schatz also asked NOAA what it has done to strengthen monk seal education and research, and how we can better facilitate visitors to Hawaii. He requested NOAA respond by the end of the month.