Posted at 5:50 p.m., Monday, August 6, 2001

Mother monk seal nips Kaua'i tourist

POIPU, Kaua'i – A Texas man was nipped in the behind by a mother monk seal over the weekend off Kaua'i because he swam too close to the seal's newborn pup, officials said.

The monk seal nipped the man yesterday because it probably viewed him as a threat to her 2-week-old pup, said Don Heacock, an aquatic biologist with the state Department of Land and Natural Resources Division of Aquatic Resources.

The man was snorkeling outside an area that officials restrict to give the mother and pup some swimming and resting room.

Officials doubled the size of the restricted area after the incident.

Delores Clark, a spokeswoman for the National Marine Fisheries Service, said an investigation is being conducted.

The snorkeler was apparently about 50 feet away from shore when the mother swam rapidly up to him and gave him a nip.

The mother has been taking the pup into the water more frequently, teaching it how to swim, and she probably perceived the swimmer as a threat, Heacock said.

Monk seals are not aggressive, except mothers with pups and two or more males vying for the attention of a female, he said.