Can Spy Cams Save Hawaiian Monk Seals?
A Hawaiian monk seal takes a breath at the surface and then dives down deep to a small cluster of coral that schools of fish circle around.
The seal deftly dodges a surgeonfish, ignores a blue-striped snapper and plunges its head into a puka in the rocks where lunch might hide.
These deep-water sights are sometimes easy to miss. But not anymore, thanks to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration scientists who have teamed up with National Geographic to stick crittercams on the endangered species.
The scientists hope the footage will show people the reality of the lives of monk seals and, perhaps, even spare them a brutal death that comes across as a hate crime toward the animals.
People have bludgeoned seals while they slept on the beach and even pumped a few full of bullets at point-blank range.
“The killings of the seals is definitely a big factor in doing this work,” NOAA scientist Charles Littnan told Civil Beat. “While we don’t know who killed several of them or their reasons, I like to think that if there was a better understanding of the seals and less misinformation, some of these deaths could have been avoided. So now we are working to prevent more killings in the future.”
With the help of students, the scientists are poring over hundreds of hours of footage that provides an unprecedented window into how these rare creatures spend their days.
A year into their three-year research project, the scientists have learned enough about the seals’ habits to share early findings with the public this week. The publicity tour culminates in a lecture and screening of highlights Saturday evening at Doris Duke Theatre in Honolulu.
NOAA scientist Charles Littnan holds a National Geographic crittercam.
Their goal is to dispel some common myths that a small but vocal group of mostly fishermen perpetuate: that these seals are depleting the ocean of fish and destroying the marine environment around the islands.
Tensions have run high between fishermen and environmentalists over the past several years as more seals have migrated from the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands to the main Hawaiian Islands. Conservationists have struggled to curb violent attacks on the seals.
From 2009 to 2012, eight seals are believed to have been killed by humans, said Charles Littnan, leader of the Hawaiian Monk Seal Research Program. The most recent was in April 2012 on Kauai.
There are just over 1,000 Hawaiian monk seals left in the world, according to NOAA’s most recent estimates. Roughly 900 live in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands, and some 150 live in the main Hawaiian Islands.
NOAA envisions a “culture of coexistence,” Littnan said. This starts with learning more about the seals and sharing that information with the public.
A Hawaiian monk seal swims with sharks wearing a National Geographic crittercam.
The feds acknowledge their poor track record and understand that rebuilding the community’s trust is critical. Littnan said NOAA is approaching everything differently with this project to overcome poor transparency and lackluster outreach efforts.
The team has engaged the public from the outset on this project, he said, asking the community what information it wants to know and involving students in analyzing the data.
“We’re getting to know each other as people,” Littnan said.
NOAA can, Littnan explained, now say with confidence — and back it up with video evidence — that the seals aren’t eating everything in the ocean or wrecking the reefs. Over the next couple years, the scientific team expects to find answers to more difficult questions, including the seals’ effect on commercial and subsistence fishing.
The project, which receives funding from NOAA and Duke University as well as in-kind contributions and private donations, is expected to cost $200,000 in all.
“We don’t want everyone to love monk seals,” the scientist said. “We want people to make good decisions based on good information so people stop lashing out and hurting the animals. It’s worth whatever the investment.”
NOAA scientist Charles Littnan holds a National Geographic crittercam.
The crittercams, which National Geographic lets NOAA use for free, are put on the seals for four to six days at a time. The seals are selected after a rigorous process to determine good candidates. The scientists rule out pregnant females, for instance.
The scientists glue the cameras, which are small black tubes, to the back of the seals’ fur after capturing them with hoop nets. Tracking devices help the scientists locate the seal when they decide to remove the camera later on.
So far, the footage has shown seals battling two sharks to eat an octopus, confrontations with large eels and a lot of sleeping both on land and underwater.
“Like most animals, they’re living in relative harmony with the environment,” Littnan said. “Their doing their thing, which isn’t much.”
The greater challenge, for the moment, remains finding harmony with some fishermen.
