COURTESY WAIKIKI AQUARIUM
Ho‘ailona, the Hawaiian monk seal, has returned to his residence at Waikiki Aquarium. The aquarium plans to hold a special homecoming party for him this Saturday.
Ho‘ailona, the Waikiki Aquarium’s resident Hawaiian monk seal, has returned after several years away.
The Waikiki Aquarium announced the seal’s return earlier this week and invited the community to a special homecoming party scheduled from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. this Saturday.
“We’re incredibly excited to welcome Ho‘a back to Hawaii,” said Dr. Judy Lemus, interim director, in a news release. “This is a joyful moment for our staff, members, and community as we celebrate the care, science, and collaboration that made his return possible.”
Ho‘aiolana — known affectionately as Hoa for short — is a male monk seal who took up residence at the Waikiki Aquarium after developing cataracts in both of his eyes.
Born on Kauai in 2008, Ho‘a had been rescued after abandonment at birth.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration released him back to the wild, but he became too friendly with people while frequenting the waters off of Molokai.
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For a time, Ho‘a was a resident at the Long Marine Laboratory at the University of California, Santa Cruz, where biologists were studying monk seals. There, he was known as KP2.
He became a resident at the Waikiki Aquarium in 2011, where he shared the monk seal habitat with Maka. In 2018, Maka died of natural causes at the age of 34.
In 2021, during the early years of the COVID pandemic, Ho‘a went back to UCSC to be part of a behavioral study as work to renovate and repair the aquarium’s monk seal habitat got underway.
The Waikiki Aquarium says the celebration will feature keiki-friendly activities, including arts and crafts, a touch pool, photos with mermaids, and educational booths.
A Hawaiian blessing is scheduled to take place at 10:30 a.m. on the Monk Seal Deck.
Hawaiian monk seals are considered one of the most endangered seal species in the world, according to NOAA.
Only an estimated 1,600 individuals remain in the wild, and the seals are protected by state and federal laws.
Ho‘a is at the aquarium under a special permit from NOAA’s National Marine Fisheries Service. The Waikiki Aquarium considers him a “charismatic ambassador” for his species.