Monk Seal Monday #7: Benny | April 2015 | Edition: 1/1

Every group has its characters, right? Well, Benny is the biggest character in the current population of Oahu's monk seals.

Benny (#MonkSealRE74) is an alpha male, and he is known for getting around. The night before this was taken, I was on the most northern tip of the island and Benny was there, scoping out the female seals in the area. When I got the call asking me to respond to a beach in Honolulu, I was surprised to hear that he was now on the south shore.

Benny picked an incredibly small beach to haul out on, and a crowd had gathered. In my role as a volunteer, I was doing outreach and trying to both answer questions and encourage people to please give him space in what was already a tiny seal resting area (SRA).

When a commotion broke out between some people observing him, he lifted his head and looked around almost as though making sure his adoring fans were there.

The Monk Seal Monday collection is 20 images curated from more than 10 years of photographing one of the most endangered marine mammals in the world, the Hawaiian monk seal. Only 1,400 remain and 30% of those are here today due to the direct intervention of the organizations working to conserve them. I have spent thousands of hours doing education and outreach as a volunteer on the beaches with these beautiful animals.

I've also been doing Monk Seal Monday posts on social media for longer than I can remember and will continue to do so every Monday. Despite all our best efforts, this is a species hanging in the balance. I hope my Monk Seal post each Monday helps call attention to this beautiful animal and the work to conserve them for future generations. Now, with NFTs curated from these Monk Seal Monday images, I hope to do more.

A portion of the proceeds from each sale in this collection will be donated to the non-profit organizations on the front lines of rescuing this species from extinction.

Jason O'Rourke is an award-winning wildlife and landscape photographer living in Hawaii, recognized by National Geographic YourShot, Outdoor Photographer, Hawaii Magazine, Digital Photo, American Photo, the Los Angeles Times, the Honolulu Star-Advertiser, PhotoCon Hawaii, and Turtle Bay Resort.