Rising Tide Images
Slumbering Seal
A healthy-looking Hawaiian monk seal came ashore, shoveled its face into the sand, and nodded off to sleep on a sandy beach for the remainder of the morning.
Endemic to Hawaii, this species of monk seal was established in the archipelago millions of years before the human populated main volcanic islands emerged above sea level. The original seal-occupied islands have since receded to coral atolls and are now part of Papahānaumokuākea. A recently updated survey estimate by NOAA indicates a small, but encouraging, population increase to 1,570 individuals throughout the Hawaiian archipelago; about 400 inhabiting the main islands. However, Hawaiian monk seals remain endangered and among the rarest of marine mammals.
Slumbering Seal
A healthy-looking Hawaiian monk seal came ashore, shoveled its face into the sand, and nodded off to sleep on a sandy beach for the remainder of the morning.
Endemic to Hawaii, this species of monk seal was established in the archipelago millions of years before the human populated main volcanic islands emerged above sea level. The original seal-occupied islands have since receded to coral atolls and are now part of Papahānaumokuākea. A recently updated survey estimate by NOAA indicates a small, but encouraging, population increase to 1,570 individuals throughout the Hawaiian archipelago; about 400 inhabiting the main islands. However, Hawaiian monk seals remain endangered and among the rarest of marine mammals.