Puppy Love
by James Temple
Title
Puppy Love
Artist
James Temple
Medium
Photograph - Photography
Description
My friend Diane Pike sent me this photograph she took of a new Hawaiian monk seal pup by its mother on a beach in Kalaupapa.
Diane, island coordinator for the Marine Mammal Response Team, is part of a movement to save the monk seal from extinction. The endangered Hawaiian monk seal, a biological treasure unique to the Hawaiian Archipelago, is in crisis. Despite living mostly in the now relatively protected environment of the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands, the monk seal population has declined steadily and is at its lowest level in recorded history about 1,200 seals. Unless the current trajectory of population numbers is reversed, the species abundance is expected to fall below 1000 in the next four years.
Currently, a monk seal pups chance of surviving to the reproductive age of seven to ten years is less than one in five. In 2008 only 43 pups were counted in the main Hawaiian islands. The pup in Diane's photograph was born on May 6th, here on the island of Moloka'i. Proceeds from the sale of this print will be donated to saving the endangered Hawaiian Monk Seal.
Uploaded
May 19th, 2010
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