A Seal by Any Other Name…: The endangered Hawaiian monk seal has a new name: Neomonachus schauinslandi, reflecting its genetic divergence from the Mediterranean monk seal.
The name change reflects recent genetic studies by researchers at the Smithsonian and colleagues in Germany and at Fordham University that indicate the common ancestor of both the Caribbean monk seal, last sighted in 1952, and the Hawaiian monk seal diverged from the Mediterranean monk seal some 6.3 million years ago. Analyses of DNA from skins of the Caribbean monk seal kept in museums as well as morphological examinations led the scientists to propose the new name – actually, an entirely new genus.
Their work, published earlier this year in the journal ZooKeys, speculates that the Caribbean and Hawaiian seal species became separated when a natural channel linking the Atlantic and Pacific was closed by the formation of the Panamanian isthmus between three million and four million years ago.
Although the Hawaiian and Mediterranean monk seals are no longer in the same genus, they do share one important characteristic: both are critically endangered, with around 1,100 Hawaiian monk seals and some 900 Mediterranean monk seals representing the entire known population of these two distantly related species.
OIP Defends Withheld Names: The state Office of Information Practices has upheld the refusal of Governor Neil Abercrombie to disclose the names of unsuccessful applicants for appointment to the Commission on Water Resource Management.
In 2012, Environment Hawai`i requested the list of applicants for two vacant positions on the commission. The governor’s office refused to disclose the names, prompting the request for an opinion from the OIP.
The OIP issued its memorandum opinion on our request on November 17, finding that there is no legal basis for disclosure. The opinion, authored by OIP staff attorney Carlotta Amerino and endorsed by Cheryl Kakazu Park, OIP administrator, determined that two exceptions to disclosure allowed in the state’s Uniform Information Practices Act apply: first, there is the “clearly unwarranted invasion of personal privacy” that would occur if applicants’ names were disclosed; second, there was the frustration of a legitimate government function that would result from the practice of making applicants’ names public.
In addition to the public not having any right to know who has applied, the applicants themselves have an expectation of privacy, given “the long-standing policy of not disclosing the lists.”
As to the frustration of a government function, the OIP states that “disclosure could deter future applicants who do not desire to be subjected to public scrutiny unless they are appointed, thus reducing the pool of applicants.”
Although the OIP defended the withholding of the lists, it does note that withholding the lists is not mandatory under UIPA, and the governor could, if he wished, choose to disclose the names of all applicants. “OIP would, however, respectfully recommend that the intent to make such a disclosure be announced prospectively at the time applications are solicited … so that the CWRM applicants … are on notice that their privacy interests are thus diminished,” the opinion states.
Pepe`ekeo Point Update: Big Island builder Scott Watson and his California partner, Gary Olimpia, have been dealt another setback by the Hawai`i County Windward Planning Commission. As we reported earlier, the commission in September refused to approve their request to amend the original Special Management Area permit for the larger subdivision in a manner that would legitimize the house site on the lot where Watson has already laid much of the foundation for the 7,500-square-foot “Pepe`ekeo Palace” he and Olimpia are building.
Attorney Steve Strauss asked the commission to reconsider the SMA amendment application, and on November 6, it was on the commission’s agenda. Despite Watson’s having encouraged several friends and associates to testify on his behalf, commissioners were unmoved.
After hearing Strauss’s presentation, commission chair Myles Miyasato asked for a motion. As at the September meeting, no motion was forthcoming, and the request was deemed to be denied.
Volume 25, Number 6 December 2014