Monday, April 16, 2012

Endangered Monk Seal DSC_4329


Endangered Monk Seal DSC_4329
Originally uploaded by Debbie Prediger Photography

The Hawaiian monk seal, Monachus schauinslandi, is an endangered species of earless seal in the Phocidae family that is endemic to the Hawaiian Islands.[2]
They are solitary animals, like some monks. The Hawaiian monk seal is one of two remaining monk seal species; the other is the Mediterranean monk seal. A third species, the Caribbean monk seal, is extinct.[3]
The Hawaiian monk seal is the only seal native to Hawaii.[4