A Hawaiian monk seal that became quite the celebrity while swimming and playing with Molokai beachgoers in 2009 has returned home.

After spending two years participating in biological research and receiving medical treatment for cataracts at the University of California at Santa Cruz, KP2 will spend the rest of his days at Waikiki Aquarium, serving as an ambassador for his species.

"We learned what we needed to learn from him, and it’s time to bring him back to Hawaii," said David Schofield, marine mammal health and response manager for the Pacific Islands region of the National Marine Fisheries Service, upon KP2’s arrival Tuesday at the Coast Guard air station in Kalaeloa.

While conducting biological research on the now 3-year-old mammal, biologists discovered that the Hawaiian monk seal is biologically tied to the islands.

"There’s no other place these seals can live," said Terrie Williams, a biology professor at UC-Santa Cruz.

The Hawaiian monk seal is the most critically endangered marine mammal living entirely in U.S. waters. Schofield said he hopes KP2’s notoriety will attract visitors to the aquarium so they can become educated about this unique species and how to protect it from extinction.

Ninety percent of the 1,100 surviving Hawaiian monk seals live around the uninhabited Northwestern Hawaiian Islands, but Schofield said the population fares better around the more populated islands.

Already this year a record four monk seals have been born around Oahu. Educating the community about not feeding, making eye contact or playing with the seals is key, Schofield said.

"KP2 can teach us all how we need to coexist with monk seals here on the islands," Schofield said.

Now weighing in at 205 pounds, KP2 was found off Kauai in May 2008 just days after being abandoned by his mother. He was raised by a wildlife rescue team and released back into the wild near Molokai later that year.

In 2009 his playfulness with swimmers became a public safety concern, and a medical evaluation revealed his vision was 80 percent impaired.

KP2 will be on display at the Waikiki Aquarium sometime in December or January after a quarantine period.