So far, O`ahu has 4 newborn pups since the middle of February this year and already 2 of 4 pups have weaned.
Kaiwi, RK96 was on April 5th, one day before Nahoa’s birth.
I was closely watching Kaiwi, RK96/97 (8 years old), and her pup, Nohea, PO2 (female, was born on April 6, 2020.) I often run into Kaiwi at several beaches and observing her for over 3 years. She is a great mother raised Kawena, RH36/37 (born on June 15, 2016) and Wawamalu, RK24/25 (born on April 23, 2018.)
Nohea, PO2 was born on April 6, 2020 to Kaiwi, RK96/97
As I talked about a newborn pup on the last blog, mother seals nurse her pup for 5 to 6 weeks. Having cared for her pup for a long period without eating, the exhausted mother is ready to wean her pup. She has lost about half of her pre-birth weight, and if she does not eat soon she will die. Kaiwi weaned Nohea, her pup on 42 days after the birth.
Nohea was 14 days old
Nohea was 18 days old
Nohea was 31 days old
Nohea was 35 days old
Nohea was 39 days old and mama, Kaiwi, RK96
Nohea 41 days old, one day before mama weaned her
Kaiwi and Nohea’s last swimming together
Kaiwi’s job complete, she quietly slips away, heading for open water to tend to her own nutritional needs. From this day on she will have nothing more to do with the pup who must now learn to fend for itself.
Kaiwi, you did a great job done! Rest and eat a lot of food.
Weaned Seal Pup Needs Community Help to Grow up Safe and Wild (NOAA)
Please attention!
A recently weaned female Hawaiian monk seal pup has been resting along the shoreline and swimming in the waters along O`ahu’s Kaiwi Coastline. She has appeared near some busy beach areas and hauled out in ares with a lot of vehicle activity on the beach. With the upcoming Memorial Day holiday — and the recent lifting of beach restrictions — we expect there will be many people and vehicles on the beach this weekend.
NOAA Fisheries gave the seal a temporary ID of PO2. She is also known as Nohea (lovely), a name gifted to her by 4th graders at a Hawaiian immersion school in Hau`ula. Her mother is RK96 (Kaiwi), who was also born in this area in 2011. Nohea is Kaiwi’s third pup, and she is also the third to be born on the Kaiwi Coast.
How can you help?
Recently weaned pups are highly impressionable and this is a critical stage in their lives. Their mothers are no longer with them and the pups must learn to find food for themselves. These newly weaned pups may seek social interaction with humans.
Give all seals space and avoid interacting or playing with them in the water and on the beach
Don’t drive on the beach, as the seal has been resting in areas frequently traversed by vehicles.
Keep dogs leashed when at the beach
