KEKAHA, Hawaii, June 8 (UPI) -- The Surfrider Foundation says it's offering a reward for information in the shooting deaths of two endangered Hawaiian monk seals in Kauai, Hawaii.
So far, foundation members have raised $8,000 with more expected as the story of the slain seals spreads, said Carl Berg, a spokesman for the foundation, a non-profit group dedicated to protecting the world's oceans and beaches.
The first tagged seal, a 4-year-old known to state environmental officials as I-19, was found shot to death April 19 at a Kaumakani Beach, WITV, Honolulu reported Monday. The second tagged seal, which was pregnant and known as RK06, was found shot to death May 21 on Kauai's North Shore.
Fewer than 1,200 monk seals remain in the world, said Gordon LaBedz, chairman of Surfrider's Kauai chapter.
"That's what makes this such a crime," LaBedz said. "We're doing everything we can to bring these guys back into the community."
