OF THE LAND
The Life
HMMRN volunteers practice loading an inflatable dolphin onto a stretcher as part of the network’s Beach Response training.
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14 | www.KeOlaMagazine.com | KE OLA
hen a rare Blainesville’s beaked whale—which resembles a dolphin—stranded on Maui’s south shore last August, a volunteer alert was issued via Facebook and email. Volunteers with the Hilo Marine Mammal Response Network (HMMRN) were put on notice in the event that the whale would be brought to
Before they deal with live animals, volunteers practice unloading an inflatable dolphin into the Critical Care Pool at the HCRF as part of the stranding network’s Animal Transport training workshop.
the only dolphin and whale rehab facility in the entire state, the Hawai‘i Cetacean Rehabilitation Facility (HCRF) in Keaukaha. HMMRN is a volunteer-based group at University of Hawai‘i-Hilo that responds to monk seal sightings and birthings, as well as stranded and deceased marine mammals. Many of the volunteers with the Hilo Marine Mammal Response Network also volunteer at the dolphin and whale rehab facility. With a coordinated effort between marine mammal responders on Maui, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the Coast Guard, and the HCRF, the whale was flown to Hilo on a Coast Guard C130 aircraft. Nearly 40 volunteers were on hand when the whale, later named “Kamaui” meaning “of Maui”, arrived at the facility. All those volunteers came in handy when it came time to lift the whale into the pool. Although HCRF has protocols for lifting an animal into the pool, the equipment is only rated up to 1,000 pounds, leaving volunteers to hand-carry the stretcher containing the 1,800-pound, 11-foot long animal off the trailer and into the pool. When a marine mammal arrives at the facility, staff and volunteers move into high gear. Whales and dolphins at the HCRF require 24-hour care and dozens of volunteers are needed for food preparation, observing and monitoring the animal. “The first thing we did [was] hydrate him,” says Jennifer Turner, assistant director of both the HMMRN and HCRF. Because whales get most of their fluids from their food, the whale was initially given fluids every four hours. “We gave him Pedialyte too, just like you would a kid. Once a day we added a multivitamin to it.”