Hawaiian Monk Seals on Kauai & Niihau

Hawaiian monk seals are listed by the International Union for Nature Conservation as endangered creatures and it’s estimated that only 1,200- 1,400 individuals are alive at this time. That’s why it’s important that if you see one on your visit to Kauai you do two things: first, consider yourself blessed, and second, think about what you can do to respect the seal and support its survival.

The Hawaiian monk seal is the state mammal of Hawaii and in fact, they’re just one of two mammals (the other being the hoary bat) that are endemic to Hawaii. We’re lucky on Kauai because the majority of the Hawaiian monk seal population lives in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands—Kauai, Niihau, and a handful of other tiny islands that almost nobody can name.