Author: Editor

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Man slapped with $1000 fine for monk seal harrassment

Media Watch, KITV, 15 June 2012

An Oahu man was sentenced to a $1,000 fine and 80 hours of community service in Kaneohe District Court after being cited by Department of Land and Natural Resources enforcement officers for illegally landing on Manana island.

Manana is also known as Rabbit island.  It is a wildlife sanctuary that is closed to the public at all times.

Seals are protected under state and federal endangered species laws and are known to haul out on Manana to rest.  Large prominent signs are posted on the island noting it is a sanctuary off-limits to visitors.

Travis Kane, 19, was observed and photographed throwing rocks at a seal on the island on January 14, 2012. [More]

Source: States cites man for harassment of monk seal, KITV, 15 June 2012.

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Scientists to strap cameras to Hawaiian seals

Media Watch, Washington Examiner, 15 June 2012

Some fishermen blame the endangered species for stealing their catch. There are unfounded rumors that they devour and deplete fish stocks. And at least four of them have been killed by humans in Hawaii since late last year.

To help correct the misconceptions, government scientists plan to glue submersible cameras onto the seals’ backs, using the footage to prove to fishermen the animals are not harming their way of life. It may even end up on reality TV. [More]

For further information on the project: http://www.monksealfoundation.org/research.aspx

Source: Scientists to strap cameras to Hawaiian seals, Washington Examiner, 15 June 2012.

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Making a Killing, Earth Summit Satire

Press Release, Iridescent Publishing, 12 June 2012

William M Johnson’s critically-acclaimed satire, Making a Killing, has recently been republished by Iridescent Publishing as an Amazon Kindle ebook. The publication marks the 20th anniversary of the Earth Summit (June 20-22), when some 50,000+ dignitaries, bureaucrats, scientists, nature managers, conservationists, business leaders, celebrities, and the world’s press will once again converge upon glamorous Rio de Janeiro for the UN’s “Rio+20” Earth Summit — billed as a ‘once in a lifetime opportunity’ to save the planet.

With elephant-hunting royalty again in the news, nature managers insisting that endangered species must be made to pay for their own conservation, sea levels on the rise and deserts on the march, the frenetic political escapism, corporate wheeling and dealing, and media frenzy that Making a Killing flayed back in 1996, are if anything even more acute today — and just as deserving of this satire’s poison-tipped pen.

An End of the World Black Comedy, ‘the deepest shade of noir…’ — BBC Wildlife

‘[A] highly original, often unexpectedly witty but frightening tale of man’s destruction of the Earth and his seeming indifference to the fate of all creatures but his own… This sharp, brilliantly observed book deserves a wide audience.’ — Virginia McKenna

‘A mind-blowing and witty exposé… A no-holds barred, no mercy account of the conservation mercenaries’ (Have Bad News — Will Travel — First Class) successful efforts to get a rich living from a dying planet…’ — Ian MacPhail, a founder of World Wildlife Fund (WWF)

Excerpts of Making a Killing are available for free download on Iridescent’s new website  www.iridescent-publishing.com, where several monk seal titles are also available.

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DLNR, NOAA urge reporting of monk seal incidents

News Release, Department of Land and Natural Resources, Hawaii, 11 May 2012

The Department of Land and Natural Resources (DLNR) and NOAA Fisheries announced this week that since March 2012, NOAA Fisheries, DLNR, and partners have responded to five seal hooking incidents involving four individual Hawaiian monk seals. Three of these responses are still in progress.

NOAA and DLNR would like to take this opportunity to remind fishermen that monk seal deaths and injuries from fishing interactions can often be prevented, and adverse impacts to fishermen and seals can be reduced through early reporting of incidents.

“Monk seals are a vital part of Hawai‘i’s marine and cultural environment,” said William J. Aila, Jr., DLNR Chairperson. “While DLNR and NOAA seek to address all adverse impacts on Hawaiian monk seals, we want to acknowledge the cooperation of Hawai‘i fishermen and emphasize that we do not consider fishing interactions in the main Hawaiian Islands to currently pose a major threat to monk seal recovery.”

NOAA Fisheries Service data indicate that a total of 77 hooking incidents have been reported over the past 10 years, with at total of nine incidents in 2011 and eight incidents reported thus far in 2012 (including the five incidents discussed here). [More]

Source: DLNR, NOAA ask for fishermen’s kokua in reporting monk seal hooking or entanglements, News Release, Department of Land and Natural Resources, Hawaii, 11 May 2012 (PDF).

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Vancouver Aquarium veterinarian assists in monk seal surgery

Media Watch, Vancouver Aquarium, 11 May 2012
Dr. Haulena gives endangered monk seal anaesthesia for surgical procedure (NOAA)

Vancouver Aquarium veterinarian, Dr. Martin Haulena, received an emergency call on May 9 to fly to Hawaii to help support a local rescue effort.

He participated in two successful procedures to remove accidentally-ingested fishing hooks from endangered monk seals on May 10.

One of the monk seals required surgery to remove the hook, which was lodged deep in the esophagus near the opening to the stomach. Dr. Haulena performed the anesthesia and collaborated with Dr. Robert Braun and veterinarians at the Honolulu Zoo to remove the hook. The seal is in recovery and rehabilitation is expected to take several days to weeks. [More]

Source: Aquarium veterinarian helps save monk seals, Vancouver Aquarium, 11 May 2012.

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Conservation award for Madeira monk seals

Rosa Pires, Parque Natural da Madeira Service
The prize ceremony took place on May 7 in Lisbon, and was attended by the Portuguese Minister for Agriculture, Forestry, Sea and Land Management, Assunção Cristas. Photo: Pablo Larrinoa.

The project “Monk Seal — a recovering species in Madeira” of the Parque Natural da Madeira Service was the project winner of the 2012 BES Biodiversity award.

The award is an initiative of the Portuguese bank Espírito Santo in partnership with the Research Centre in Biodiversity and Genetic Resources (CIBIO) of Porto University and the Institute for Nature Conservation and Biodiversity (ICNB).

Awarded annually, BES Biodiversity is currently the largest Portuguese award for research and business activity in environmental conservation and aims to recognize innovative research projects, conservation and biodiversity management in Portugal.

According to the BES press release, the fifth edition of this award was devoted to the theme “Biodiversity: Research and Conservation” and sought to distinguish conservation research projects with a strong practical component and results. The prize was awarded in recognition of the unique work in preservation and recovery of the endangered Mediterranean monk seal.

With the project prize, 75.000 Euros, the Parque Natural da Madeira Service intends to maintain the solid and continuous work that has been done in Madeira through the involvement of Madeira citizens in the monk seals’ protection, through the surveillance of their habitat and through improvement of the monitoring system by using automatic cameras. This task will link the Parque Natural da Madeira Service and the CBD-Habitat Foundation of Spain, which is already using this system to monitor monk seals in the Western Sahara.