Monk seal comes home

HANAPEPE — TT40 had a homecoming yesterday normally reserved for major celebrities.

The 20-year old, 450-pound Hawaiian monk seal that has received a ton of attention in past weeks received quite a bit more yesterday as the new media darling returned to Kaua‘i after having surgery to remove a large fish hook.

TT40 (federal officials’ name for the critter) was flown home in the belly of a Coast Guard C-130, flanked by more of an entourage than Brittany Spears, and surrounded by television reporters.

After landing at Lihu‘e Airport, the plane was ushered to the commuter terminal where celebrity Leer jets are known to frequent.

As if shielding an actress from the press, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Fisheries employees refused to release the name of the beach where TT40 would be released until after the landing.

In the end, though, with over 40 volunteers, Coast Guard personnel, NOAA veterinarians and ecologists, reporters, cameramen, and gawking tourists and locals on hand, TT40 sauntered back out of his temporary cage and into the water at Salt Pond Beach Park.

Sheltered from the waves by the reef, he swam in the shallows near Burns Field for almost 15 minutes, re-acclimating himself to the surroundings, before heading out through the channel and into the deep ocean.

TT40 is a regular on the Westside, often spotted on the west side of Salt Pond Beach Park, said Donna Lee, an NOAA volunteer.

“The rescue of TT40 has truly been a community effort from beginning to end,” said Brad Ryon, NOAA Fisheries marine biologist. He mentioned the contributions of veterinarians donating their time and equipment, to flights to and from O‘ahu by the Coast Guard, as well as the U.S. Marines, the state of Hawai‘i, and the University of Hawai‘i.

TT40 was originally spotted near Kilauea a month ago, trailing fishing line from his mouth. After chasing him around the island for the next week, from Kapa‘a to Po‘ipu, researchers captured him in Waimea.

He was “airlifted” to the Kane‘ohe Marine Corps Air Station, and surgery was performed at the UH Marine Mammal Research Program’s Laboratory on the Kane‘ohe Marine Corps Air Station, a NOAA spokesperson said.

Dr. Robert Braun, a Hawai‘i veterinarian, performed the surgery June 16, and was on hand yesterday to see TT40 swim away.

The surgery, which took nearly six hours, had to be performed when normal, less-invasive methods of removing the fishhook failed, Braun said.

The hook, which was stuck between the diaphragm and the heart, was in a difficult place, so the stomach was literally lifted out of TT40’s body, a group of incisions was made through the stomach, and the hook was then massaged through the incisions, he added.

“If the fish hook had not been removed, infection may have set in and he may have died,” Braun said. “Now he has a much better chance of survival, and we have gained valuable experience and knowledge about the species.”

After a day of rest after the surgery, federal officials began feeding TT40 again, said Braun. In a special 20-foot-diameter pool at Kane‘ohe, TT40 recuperated, exercised, and got ready for his trip back home, he added.

Charles Littnan, a NOAA ecologist, will be keeping a close eye on this particular monk seal in the future. “We’ll be checking several times a day,” Littnan said at Salt Pond yesterday.

TT40 was equipped with a transmitter that tracks him both for diseases and location.

The transmitter, when linked with a satellite when TT40 surfaces, can also transmit how often and how deep he dives, the ecologist said.

They will compare the new data to the old data they have been collecting since he was equipped in February, he added.

“We will be monitoring that for as long as the (radio) transmits,” Littnan said.

Tom Finnegan, staff writer, may be reached at 245-3681 (ext. 252) or tfinnegan@pulitzer.net.