Endangered seal gained 100 pounds in ‘remarkable recovery.’ See him waddle home
Four endangered seals are back home in the wild “with a new outlook on life” after receiving “life-saving care” in Hawaii, wildlife officials say.
The rescued Hawaiian monk seals each spent time recovering at the The Marine Mammal Center’s hospital, Ke Kai Ola, in Kona, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Fisheries in the Pacific Islands said in a May 12 news release.
Without medical help, “their chances of survival were grim,” but with “specialized care,” the seals’ health rebounded, officials said.
DT46 and DT48
Officials said their seasonal field camp staff stumbled on male and female seal pups DT46 and DT48 as they were conducting research at Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument.
“The pups were underweight, and their chance of survival through the winter was less than 1 percent,” officials said.
Staff treated the pups, who were suffering from malnutrition and gastrointestinal parasites, and the two were released this month near where they were initially found, officials said.
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During their release, the pups briefly explored the area before wading into the water, officials said.
R419
“R419 is one of the more severe monk seal medical cases we’ve seen recently,” officials said.
After a concerned community member found the “ailing seal” in O‘ahu, they reached out to officials.
Rescuers brought him to the nonprofit’s center from the beach, officials said.
Staff treated the “severely underweight” seal for a number of injuries, including “multiple, infected injuries” thought to be from another male seal, “several large abscesses on his back,” and “traumatic injuries to his right front flipper,” according to officials.
After receiving “antibiotics, deworming and pain medications, and dietary supplements,” the seal “made a remarkable recovery — gaining approximately 100 healthy pounds during treatment,” officials said.
He was released in April, according to officials.
A video of his release shows rescuers carry him on a beach.
Once the crate door is open, he slowly wobbles toward the incoming waves, pausing to take a few glances around.
He then swims off in the distance, the video shows.
RS52
RS52, a juvenile male, was rescued from Maui after officials noticed “he was losing weight at an alarming rate.”
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Staff treated him for his malnutrition and gastrointestinal parasites, officials said.
Wildlife officials said they “released him back on Maui in January after he received a clean bill of health.”
Following his release, he has been spotted on the south shores of Maui and on the island of Lāna‘i, “which is where he was born in 2023,” officials said.
There are only about 1,600 Hawaiian monk seals alive today, “making it the most endangered seal or sea lion species in the United States,” according to The Marine Mammal Center.
“Rehabilitations like these move us one step closer to our goal of removing Hawaiian monk seals from the endangered species list,” officials said.
This story was originally published May 14, 2025 at 2:34 PM with the headline "Endangered seal gained 100 pounds in ‘remarkable recovery.’ See him waddle home."
