A hastily convened team of specialists launched early this month to try to save a Hawaiian monk seal on Kaua'i's Na Pali Coast that was reported to be injured and to have something wrapped around its neck.

The report seemed credible and the threat was real — Hawaiian monk seals are an endangered species and their populations have been declining. Entanglement in marine debris is recognized as a significant factor in the decline of the seal population.

Specialists from National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Fisheries and related organizations were ready to go to the seal's aid. The Navy at the Pacific Missile Range Facility, which sits at one end of Na Pali, provided two rigid-hull inflatable boats. The state Department of Land and Natural Resources participated. They powered to Miloli'i Beach on July 2, but the sea was too rough for a landing. There were two seals on the beach, and the team swam to shore with gear to check on them.

The seal with the apparent neck injury was still on the beach, and the observers found that while it had been entangled at one time, it was not caught any longer. NOAA biologist John Henderson said it had an obvious, deep indentation in its neck and a significant scar — but the scar was healed. "The entanglement that caused the scar was not recent," he said.

Marine mammal veterinarian Robert Braun said the seal also appeared to have some other injuries, but they were not serious, and he decided not to try to restrain or sedate the animal since it appeared to be a 4-year-old female that could be pregnant.

Monk seal entanglements are comparatively common in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands. There, broad reefs snag thousands of pounds of drifting nets and ropes, and curious seals are not infrequently trapped in the gear. There were 14 known cases of entanglement in 2004 alone.

Henderson said the seal on the beach at Miloli'i had not been tagged, so its origin and any clues to where it got its scarring were not known for certain, but other reports suggested it may have been around Kaua'i for some time. It is part of a growing but still small population of Hawaiian monk seals in the main Hawaiian Islands.

"Another lesson learned in the dangers of marine mammal entanglements — fortunately, this one had a relatively happy ending," said Pacific Missile Range Facility environmental coordinator John Burger.