One of the many patients treated at the Ke Kai Ola hospital on Hawaiʻi Island, the only hospital dedicated to the care of endangered Hawaiian monk seals. PC: Marine Mammal Center/ NOAA
In late September, our team at HWF was thrilled to have the opportunity to celebrate <<10 years>> with Ke Kai Ola, the only hospital in Hawaiʻi dedicated to the conservation and care of critically endangered Hawaiian monk seals (ʻīlio holo i ka uaua, Monachus schauinslandi)! Our team was able to connect and network with so many amazing organizations and friends, both old and new, and celebrate the incredible successes of this important facility.
HWF crew members Lindsey Kramer, Megan Lamson-Leatherman, and ʻAuliʻi Mahuna celebrated 10-years with the Ke Kai Ola center, and hosted an outreach booth to share HWF information and upcoming volunteer opportunities. (PC: HWF)
At our HWF booth, there was an outpouring of support and interest in our volunteer opportunities on both Hawaiʻi Island and Maui! The keiki also got to test out their net response abilities and untangle lost fishing nets from a piece of koʻa (coral), as well as check out many of the oddities that we find washed up on the south shores of our island in our debris briefcase!
A visitor to the HWF outreach booth helps to disentangle a coral from marine debris. (PC: ʻAuliʻi Mahuna)
Hawaiʻi Wildlife Fund has been a supporter of Ke Kai Ola and The Marine Mammal Center since very beginning — helping them raise the initial funds to construct and startup Ke Kai Ola Hospital. Since then, we’ve supported the reporting of any monk seal sightings around the island (and any possible response needs in emergencies). We’re inspired to see the many accomplishments and growth of Ke Kai Ola over the past ten years. Our team can’t wait to see the positive impacts on our monk seal population and community in the next 10 years!
Our HWF informational booth, with upcoming volunteer opportunities and a chance to disentangle a tangled ko’a (coral). (PC: ʻAuliʻi Mahuna)
Congratulations to our friends and family at The Marine Mammal Center and Ke Kai Ola! We wish you 10+ more years of successful wildlife stewardship! Mahalo for all you do for the community and for our ʻīlio holo i ka uaua.
Marine Mammal Center Animal Care Coordinator, Heidi Nikolai, helped to host the day’s festivities. (PC: HWF)
