Monk seal is given new name
COURTESY HAWAII ANIMAL MARINE RESPONSE(HMAR) / JASON O’ROURKE
RJ16 has been named Kahuluokalae.
A male Hawaiian monk seal, the most recent pup born on Oahu’s North Shore in July, has been given a nickname: Kahuluokalae.
The pup, whose identification tag is RJ16, was named Kahuluokalae by cultural practitioner Keone Nunes, according to Hawaii Marine Animal Response director Jon Gelman.
Kahuluokalae is the youngest of four Hawaiian monk seal pups born this summer on Oahu. The others were a male pup named Aka, a female pup named Wailea and Kaimana, the famous monk seal pup born at Kaimana Beach.
Wildlife photographer Jason O’Rourke said in an Instagram post that the nickname is related to the beach area where he was born and that it will probably be shortened to “Kahulu.”
