One of the most endangered seal species in the world is good news.
The population of the Hawaiian monkey seal, an animal found only in Hawaii in the wild, exceeds 1,500 seals, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Announced this week.
That’s more than their number for over 20 years, which is good news not only for them but for the environment as a whole.
“If we have healthy monk seals, we know the ecosystem that supports these animals is healthy and thriving,” said Michelle Barbier, lead scientist of NOAA’s monk seal research program. He told the Associated Press.
The expressive creatures in the face stand Against a whole host of threats. There is a lot of habitat loss caused by climate change as sea level rise is absorbing into the plains where seals live.
Other hazards include confinement in fishing nets and other marine debris, consumption of harmful wastes such as fish hooks, disease, disruption of human activity on beaches, and even intentional killing of how many people.
“We’re right there and working with partners to conduct life-saving interventions for snails, prioritizing females who want to create the next generation of seals,” Barber told the AP. “We’re starting to see a real reward for intervention to save animal lives.”
In Hawaiian, the Berry Rings are called ilio-holo-i-ka-uaua, which translates as “a dog running on water”. Marine mammals can grow 6 to 7 feet long and weigh 400-600 pounds, eating a wide range of fish, octopus, squid, crustacean, and eel. Sometimes this eel causes its problems, sometimes it gets stuck in the nose of the seals. Fortunately, every link NOAA found with this particular problem turned out to be fixed.
Source: Huffpost
