The death follows a spate of monk seal killings on Molokaʻi in 2023 and around 10 suspicious deaths since then. Molokaʻi has had an especially complicated, fraught relationship with Hawaiian monk seals as the endangered marine mammals have gradually reappeared along the Main Hawaiian Islands in recent decades. There are only about 1,600 Hawaiian monk seals left in the wild, making them one of the world’s most endangered species. ”The Hawaiian name for the monk seal is ʻīlioholoikauaua, which means the “dog that runs in rough water.” The seal was raised on the concrete surfaces of Ke Kai Ola monk seal hospital in Kailua-Kona, where RL80 was being treated around the same time on Hawaiʻi island.