Rogue monk seal still
on loose off Maui coastThe mammals might look cute
but they can bite, experts caution
A 300-pound Hawaiian monk seal that has been relocated twice in the past month because it nipped and groped swimmers eluded capture by wildlife officials yesterday on Maui.
The Big Island-born seal, known to scientists as RM-34, has been seen since Tuesday in waters between Big Beach and Makena Landing, said Brad Ryon, of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Protected Resources Division.
Some people who swam with the seal said it nipped at them.
Yesterday at noon, wildlife officials were about to slip a net over the 2 1/2-year-old seal when he swam out of reach into deeper water.
"He's not being that cooperative," said Ryon, who nabbed the seal both times it was captured.
The seal first caused trouble at Kealakekua Bay last month, leading wildlife officials to move him to the south end of the Big Island. When he returned to Kealakekua within days, they tried again, moving him to Kahoolawe and fitting him with a radio transmitter tag.
On Nov. 5 the seal was seen cavorting in the ocean with other Kahoolawe seals. But by Tuesday he had made his way to the Kihei Coast and was again fraternizing with humans.
Jeff Walters, a biologist with the state Division of Aquatic Resources, said people should stay away from the seal: "We just want people to understand that he's cute and cuddly but he might bite somebody."
In other seal news:
>> A large female seal that has not yet been given an official identification number hauled up onto the beach in Poipu, Kauai, yesterday, where she was resting in the evening, Kauai biologist Shawn Farry reported.Anyone who sees a monk seal, especially one with a transmitter tag, is encouraged to call NOAA's 24-hour marine mammal hot line at 888-256-9840 to report the location of the animal.>> Meanwhile, K-07, or "Lucky," a seal that had been begging for fish scraps in Nawiliwili Harbor two weeks ago, seems to have returned to more normal behavior after people were instructed not to feed him, Farry said.
