Monk Seals and Seahorses

Monk seals are found only in the Hawaiian islands.  We saw them resting on the sand at Poipu and at a beach at the end of the road on the north side of the island called Ke'e.

Endanger Monk Seal

At the far end of a beach area called Anini, I went snorkeling and saw very little.  After a really short while I headed for shore but still diligently looking for any stray critter I might come across.  Ah-ha!  Is that REALLY what I think it is?  My daddy bought be some when I was about ten years old, but I NEVER thought I'd get a chance to see on on it's own terms!  I don't know... it sure is covered in a lot of mossy lookin' stuff.  I took a couple of pictures (with my vun-derful underwater camera my dear, dear husband let me buy.) 

See the seahorse's head?

The waves again push me around so the seahorse appears to be laying on its side, but its not, I was just being swept away and snapped what I could.

A wave swept me over just as I snapped the photo of this seahorse!

Maybe it's dead?  Well, even so, I'm gonna take it back to Texas to show the grandkids.  So I reach out, grab it with one hand, and start to unwrapped its tail from around the rock it had anchored itself to.  That's when I realized it WASN'T dead.  I quickly let go, and it began to glide away.  I followed, turning on the video feature of my handy dandy underwater camera.  I filmed for a minute or two before deciding, as I did with the turtle, that I had harrassed it enough.  But during that time, the seahorse would look over its shoulder at me like, "Is that crazy lady still following me?!"  "Amazing" is not sufficient to express what I felt.

When I told locals what I had seen and showed them the photos, even THEY were astonished.  I never talked with a single one that had seen a seahorse themselves.  In fact, they didn't believe any lived on their shores.  God has been good to me - but I think He pretty much outdid Himself on that one!

Sunset Surfing