Hawaiian official endorses “find out” as wildlife enforcement strategy

Not many public-service campaigns can be summarized as “don’t assault endangered wildlife unless you enjoy becoming an instructional video,” but here we are.

After a tourist hurled a rock at an endangered Hawaiian monk seal, one local resident reportedly responded with the kind of rapid peer review that skips the comment section entirely, and a Hawaii state senator gave him an award for the effort.

Awa called the vigilante an “ambassador of aloha” for taking matters into his own hands and what he viewed as educating tourists about what can happen if they mess with Hawaiian land or animals. Awa didn’t refer to the Hawaiian by name, saying they want to keep him anonymous. It appears Awa wasn’t just presenting the letter as a novelty. He suggested the footage should be shown on incoming flights, presumably as a warning to tourists.

“We see this all the time with people with a different type of mentality coming in and destroying our stuff. We’d like the airline(s) to play this type of video on all flights incoming, so that people don’t do this type of stuff,” he said.

Footage of the man assumed to be Igor Lytvynchuk made global headlines last week. Violating laws that protect endangered Hawaiian monk seals can bring fines of up to $50,000, however past violations have rarely been more than $500 to $1,000. Maui’s Mayor Richard Bissen shared his own message later in the week ensuring that he’d personally see to it Lytvynchuk is prosecuted for the act.

The Inertia

Anyone with half a clue was shocked to see the video of a man abusing a Hawaiian monk seal. All seals in U.S. waters have federal protections, but Hawaiian monk seals get extra layers of protection because they’re endangered. Attacking a protected wild animal should get you jail time and a steep fine; the punch out is complimentary.

Not many public-service campaigns can be summarized as “don’t assault endangered wildlife unless you enjoy becoming an instructional video,” but here we are.