Hawaiian monk seal pups in good shape, official says ADVERTISING Hawaiian monk seal pups in good shape, official says HONOLULU (AP) — All of the Hawaiian monk seals born this year on Oahu are doing well, a wildlife official said.
Hawaiian monk seal pups in good shape, official says
HONOLULU (AP) — All of the Hawaiian monk seals born this year on Oahu are doing well, a wildlife official said.
Four monk seal pups, two male and two female, were born between May and July. All four are doing “normal seal things, learning to forage and cruising around,” said National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration research ecologist Stacie Robinson.
The star of the bunch, Kaimana, gained celebrity status because of her rare birth in Waikiki. She was relocated in August to a more secluded part of Oahu shortly after being weaned. She is in the company of a few other adult and juvenile monk seals.
A total of 18 pups — nine on Molokai, four on Oahu, four on Kauai and one on Hawaii Island — were born this year. Three died.
On the island of Niihau, 20 pups were born this year.
Yacht gets stuck on reef, firefighters rescue 5 people
HONOLULU (AP) — Five people were rescued without harm after the yacht they were on ran aground on Lanai’s east shore.
Maui firefighters received a call from the U.S. Coast Guard on Saturday, requesting assistance with the 42-foot vessel that grounded on the reef about 300 yards from shore.
An 80-year-old man from Kaanapali, Maui, owns the yacht. He was traveling with his wife, a daughter and a couple in their 70s.
Firefighters on shore swam to the vessel when a Coast Guard boat could not get close enough. The couple swam back to shore with firefighters, while the three others were airlifted by a Maui Fire Department helicopter.
The owner and the state Department of Land and Natural Resources are working to remove the yacht.
Officials say there was no visible fuel or oil spill.
Delegate eyes ways to save Chamorro Land Trust
HAGATNA, Guam (AP) — Guam Del. Madeleine Bordallo is proposing five options to save the Chamorro Land Trust program.
The U.S. Department of Justice claims in a lawsuit that the Guam government violated the federal Fair Housing Act “for discriminating against non-Chamorros.”
The land trust program aims to hold public land for indigenous Chamorros, who can lease 1-acre tracts for $1 a year for 99 years. The Land Trust Commission also leases land for commercial use to non-Chamorros.
The federal government sued after a Caucasian Tamuning resident earlier this year filed a complaint with federal housing officials, stating he was prohibited from applying for a lease under the Chamorro Land Trust.
Attorney General Elizabeth Barrett-Anderson said the government of Guam will not compromise on the issue and plans to have the matter settled in court.
Bordallo’s letter to Gov. Eddie Calvo and Speaker Benjamin Cruz on Monday provided options to save the program that include mimicking other federal programs in Hawaii and Alaska, or creating a Chamorro tribe.
