Federal wildlife officials are planning a necropsy – or animal autopsy — on a dead Hawaiian monk seal found off the coast of Nanakuli earlier this week.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration shared on Facebook that its response partners had helped recover the body of a deceased monk seal on Wednesday.

At this time, NOAA does not have the seal’s identity or its cause of death.

NOAA Fisheries thanked the community for calling in to report the dead monk seal on its marine wildlife hotline, as well as to its partners at the Honolulu Ocean Safety Department, Hawaii Department of Land and Natural Resources, the nonprofit Hawai’i Marine Animal Response, and NOAA Office of Law Enforcement for helping to conduct a timely recovery so a post-mortem exam could be done to understand what happened.

“While these situations are always difficult, the community’s quick alert to our statewide hotline made a big difference,” said NOAA Fisheries.

To report injured or dead whales, dolphins, seals and sea turtles, call NOAA’s mrine wildlife hotline at (888) 256-9840.

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