Start Project and eight pups had been taken and released through 

 the French Frigate Shoals rehabilitation effort. 



The importance and success of this long-term effort is 

 becoming apparent. Survival rates of released animals have 

 been very high (23 of 24 animals released at Kure were known 

 to be alive at the end of 1987) and, in the past two years, 

 six female monk seals released through the Head Start Project 

 bore pups on Kure Atoll, two in 1987 and four in 1988. The 

 total number of pups born on Kure in 1988 was only eight, 

 indicating that Head Start females are becoming the principal 

 component of the population's reproductively active females. 

 Because of the program's success, it appears that the declining 

 trend in births and seal numbers at Kure may be reversing, 

 and that a self-sustaining seal population at Kure Atoll may 

 yet be achieved. The program also is providing vital 

 information on seal reproduction and survival, which will 

 improve understanding of monk seal population dynamics and 

 help determine future priority recovery needs. 



Critical Habitat Designation 



In April 1986, the National Marine Fisheries Service 

 designated certain areas as critical habitat for Hawaiian 

 monk seals under provisions of the Endangered Species Act. 

 The area designated included beaches, lagoons, and coastal 

 waters out to a depth of 10 fathoms around most of the northwest 

 Hawaiian Islands. Critical habitat designation strengthens 

 protection for endangered species by advising other Federal 

 agencies of the importance of particular habitats to listed 

 species and helps ensure that planning for contemplated Federal 

 actions recognizes and avoids adverse effects on habitats 

 critical to a listed species' survival and recovery. 



As discussed in previous Annual Reports, both the Marine 

 Mammal Commission and the Hawaiian Monk Seal Recovery Team 

 had recommended that waters out to 20 fathoms around the 

 Northwest Hawaiian Islands and Maro Reef be designated as 

 critical habitat. The recommendations were based on infor- 

 mation suggesting that seals regularly dive to and feed at 

 depths of 2 fathoms and deeper and that such areas constitute 

 essential feeding habitat. The Commission therefore wrote to 

 the Service on 26 September 1986 recommending that the matter 

 be re-opened for public comment to obtain additional information 

 on special management considerations that apparently had not 

 been considered by the Service during the designation process. 



On 15 July 1987, the Service published a Federal Register 

 notice requesting additional information on special management 

 considerations out to the 20-fathom isobath around the critical 

 habitat boundary designated previously. As described in its 

 previous Annual Report, the Commission responded by letter of 



42 



