Media Watch, Heartbeat of Kauai, 26 October 2010
I was at Ke’e beach around sunset today and was horrified to see about 20 tourists with snorkels following a Hawaiian Monk Seal around the reef, yelling to their friends on shore and making a general commotion in the water right near the seal.
Some of them were getting as close as a foot away from the seal and I went in the water to let everyone know that they should stay away from the animal and leave it alone. Nobody listened to me and they ignored my nice requests to give it some space. I’m a pretty gentle person and I eventually gave up and headed back onto the beach where I told my husband what had happened and he became infuriated that these people were harassing an endangered animal for their own entertainment. […]
Anyhow, I am posting this because I feel very passionate about the subject and I encourage all those who read this to speak up and let people know that the seals need space, peace & quiet and protection when you see them approached by tourists on the beach or in the water. If they ignore you, it might help to let them know that it is illegal to get close to the Hawaiian Monk Seals. Thanks for reading this and please do what you can to protect these sacred animal relatives!