Monk Seal Monday #9: Lei Ola 2021 | July 2021 | Edition: 1/1 NFT | License: Extended Editorial

Lei Ola (#MonkSealRH48) was a pup in 2016, but began wandering far from her birth beach early on in her life. Despite my frequent hiking around the islands, I hadn't seen her in almost five years and while I was on a survey on the West side, looking for an entirely different "seal of interest" (meaning a seal that had a reason for some concern, so our volunteers were keeping an eye out for him), I came across Lei Ola hauling out among the rocks below me.

Early in her life, Lei Ola picked up a fishing hook. Typically, volunteers will observe an animal that has a fishing hook and NOAA will dispatch a team to assess whether it needs to be removed. Fishing line is often trimmed as close to the hook as possible, but the hook will generally work its way out. Lei Ola, however, had the hook in her lip for quite some time, which is shown in some slight scarring on the right side of her mouth.

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.

Extended Editorial License: Can be used to display privately, or in commercial and non-commercial settings, or in groups with an unlimited number of participants. The License includes unlimited use and display in virtual or physical galleries, documentaries, and essays by the NFT holder. Provides no rights to create commercial merchandise, commercial distribution, or derivative works.