Tag: rescue

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Hawaiian Island to Evict Over-Friendly Seal

Press Watch, Newser, September 15, 2009

Scientists fear monk seal pup raised by people will harm his human playmates

A seal pup that loves human company is facing deportation to hundreds of miles away from his Hawaiian home, the Wall Street Journal reports. Baby monk seal KP2, who often swims with people and even climbs on boogie boards, has become a much-loved local celebrity on Molokai since he showed up in February but wildlife experts warn that as he grows bigger, he may end up accidentally killing somebody by playing too rough and holding them underwater.

The problem, experts say, is that KP2, who was hand-reared by humans after being rejected by his mother, doesn’t seem to realize that he’s a seal. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration plans to move him around 200 miles away, although he soon found his way back to Molokai after an earlier effort  to remove him, and many want him to stay. “If they take him away one more time and he comes back, I don’t think this community will let NOAA take him again,” says the head of a local center that teaches children about Hawaii’s ecology.

Further info

Hawaiian Island to Evict Over-Friendly Seal, Newser,  September 15 2009

This Baby Seal Is a People Person, And That Makes Him Dangerous, Wall Street Journal, September 15, 2009

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This Baby Seal Is a People Person, And That Makes Him Dangerous

Press Watch, The Wall Street Journal, September 15, 2009

Hawaii’s KP2 Made His Name Loving Humans, But His Ardor Is Getting Growing Pup Deported

KAUNAKAKAI, Hawaii — For months now, a baby monk seal named KP2 has been the biggest celebrity on the island of Molokai.

Since the animal arrived at Kaunakakai Wharf in February, several children from the island have made a habit of swimming with him. Area paddlers and boogie boarders have shared laughs watching him climb into or onto their boats and boards. One resident was so comfortable with KP2 that he put his golden retriever in the water with the seal and documented it in a YouTube video. […]

But now that KP2 calls Molokai home, he is likely to be sent away any day now. That’s because the 17-month-old pup is maturing. His weight, now 175 pounds, has more than doubled since spring, and he has begun playfully grabbing swimmers from behind with his flippers.

Seal experts worry that KP2 risks loving people to death. “We’ve had experiences before where a 300-pound animal is just looking to play and then starts holding people underwater for too long. And with how much KP2 likes being around people, we think he’s bound to get to that point,” says Wende Goo, a spokesperson for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. […]

Full Story

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Badem recaptured

Badem recaptured
Badem recaptured

The Turkish media is reporting that runaway monk seal Badem has been recaptured by a team from SAD-AFAG, the Underwater Research Society – Mediterranean Seal Research Group, at Milas Ören in Gökova Bay. The orphaned seal had escaped her temporary captivity in a large, specially-constructed sea pen at a fish farm in Gökova Bay.

Despite repeated warnings, swimmers and beach-goers were again interacting with the seal, posing potentially serious dangers both to the swimmers themselves and to Badem. Experts have expressed concern that every human interaction that occurs delays the possibility of Badem losing her interest in humans and returning to the wild.

Milas Ören

Milas Ören

Further info

Fok Badem’in tatili kısa sürdü, Aksam, 28 August 2009.

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Badem escapes summer confinement

From the Hürriyet photo gallery

Turkish media are reporting that Badem has escaped her temporary summer captivity in Gökova Bay and is again interacting with bathers and beach-goers along the busy coasts of Bodrum. Several bathers are reported to have sustained injuries, and monk seal conservation organisation SAD-AFAG has again been appealing to members of the public not to swim or interact with the seal — both for their own sake and for Badem’s.

Rescued in December 2006 as an orphaned pup, Badem underwent rehabilitation in Foça, with AFAG drawing on expertise and nursing skills provided by the Zeehondencrèche Lenie ‘t Hart of the Netherlands. Regrettably, the seal became imprinted on her human carers during the 5-month process, a condition later exacerbated by swimmers’ and beachgoers’ demands for contact with her. She was released in April 2007.

Further info:

Denizde Badem korkusu. Hürriyet, 26 Ağustos 2009.

Hürriyet photo gallery.

Badem undergoes veterinary treatment. 2009. The Monachus Guardian 12(1): June 2009. http://www.monachus-guardian.org/mguard23/2316mednew.htm#Turkey

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National Geographic pulls monk seal story

Following a complaint lodged by The Monachus Guardian (see Sealed with a Kiss? below), National Geographic has removed a recent picture story on its website featuring orphaned monk seal “Badem”, and National Geographic Fellow Enric Sala.

In reply to our email, Enric Sala stated: “I was shown your email today about this post on the Wild Blog site. When I read the post (which I did for the first time this morning) I was alarmed and asked for it to be removed immediately, which they did. I am well aware of the issues associated with rehabilitation of monk seals, and agree with your concerns… I apologize for any offense that this post may have caused you and our monk seal friends. I will work to make sure that this kind of mistake is not repeated.”

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Sealed With a Kiss?

Press Watch, National Geographic BlogWild, July 15, 2009

If you believe the Beatles, love is all you need. Perhaps … but best bring SCUBA gear just in case.

Badem, an orphaned monk seal that lives just off Turkey’s Mediterranean coast, gives killer hugs—literally!

The affectionate pinniped loves to play with people. […]

Marine ecologist and National Geographic Fellow Enric Sala got called in last year, along with Turkey’s Underwater Research Society (SAD-AFAG), to help teach Badem not to hurt the ones she loves. […]

Full BlogWild article


TMG comment and reply to BlogWild

Ah! for those halcyon days when National Geographic was actually a serious journal, rather than a Disney publication.

Contrary to the impression conveyed in your “report”, rescue and rehabilitation of Mediterranean monk seals — Europe’s most endangered marine mammal — is an issue of crucial importance. With few case studies from which to draw experience, each rehabilitation presents a steep learning curve to those involved — veterinarians, nurses, researchers, volunteers. Occasionally, pups in rehab may become imprinted on their human carers, and — as in Badem’s case — continue to interact with humans after release. One of the keys to remedying this behavioural aberration is to discourage beach-goers and swimmers from playing or interacting with the animal — thereby benefiting both the seal itself and the humans involved. Swimming with monk seals can be dangerous — as attested by the considerable numbers of people who have sustained injuries during such play.

Making light of the risks rather than emphasising their potential seriousness, your picture story only ends up romanticising such interactions, and is therefore the height of irresponsibility (as well as poor journalism).

To  suggest that a National Geographic Fellow was called in “to help teach Badem not to hurt the ones she loves” (i.e. by swimming and interacting with her) is not only an insult to the intelligence but also to all those dedicated people who have been working in monk seal rehab and post-release monitoring over the years.

William M. Johnson, Editor, The Monachus Guardian, www.monachus-guardian.org