{"id":222698,"date":"2025-09-26T13:17:18","date_gmt":"2025-09-26T23:17:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/?p=222698"},"modified":"2025-09-26T13:20:09","modified_gmt":"2025-09-26T23:20:09","slug":"monk-seal-returns-waikiki-aquarium","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/2025\/09\/26\/monk-seal-returns-waikiki-aquarium\/","title":{"rendered":"Beloved monk seal returns to Waik\u012bk\u012b Aquarium"},"content":{"rendered":"Reading time: <\/span> < 1<\/span> minute<\/span><\/span>
\"close-up
H\u014d\u2018ailona the Hawaiian monk seal returns to the Waik\u012bk\u012b Aquarium. (Photo credit: Waik\u012bk\u012b Aquarium)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

After several years away, H\u014dʻailona<\/span>, the Hawaiian monk seal, is returning to the Waik\u012bk\u012b Aquarium<\/a> at a special homecoming party on September 27, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.<\/p>\n

H\u014dʻailona<\/span>, whose name means “a sign from the sea,” has been a favorite among aquarium guests for more than a decade. Affectionately known as H\u014dʻa<\/span>, this monk seal serves as a charismatic ambassador, inspiring awareness and action for one of Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span>\u2019s most endangered native species.<\/p>\n

\"Aquarium
H\u014dʻa<\/span>\u2019s homecoming will feature a variety of activities and booths by community partners. (Photo credit: Waik\u012bk\u012b Aquarium)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

In 2021, H\u014dʻa<\/span> was temporarily transferred to a research program at the University of California Santa Cruz, where he was part of a behavioral study of monk seals. H\u014dʻa<\/span>\u2019s participation contributed toward conservation efforts and expanded scientific knowledge of the endangered species. During his time away, the Waik\u012bk\u012b Aquarium renovated and repaired the Hawaiian Monk Seal exhibit.<\/p>\n

H\u014dʻa<\/span>\u2019s homecoming will feature keiki-friendly activities, including educational feeds, animal enrichment, arts and crafts, a touch pool, chalk art, a mermaid photo opportunity, and face painting. A Hawaiian blessing will take place at 10:30 a.m. on the Monk Seal Deck. Community partners will also join with educational booths, including the Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> Institute of Marine Biology, University of Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> Sea Grant, Audubon Society, and Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> Marine Animal Response.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Hawaiian monk seal H\u014d\u2018ailona returns on September 27. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":16,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[26],"tags":[438,302],"class_list":["post-222698","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-community","tag-uh-sea-grant","tag-waikiki-aquarium","entry","has-media"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/222698","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/16"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=222698"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/222698\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":222703,"href":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/222698\/revisions\/222703"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=222698"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=222698"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=222698"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}