Name:
Hawaiian name: KAHEKA - tidepool
JUVENILE,

Markings: PIT tag # 4607631E46

In April 2008 an injured and entangled juvenile turtle was spotted in the tide pool at Laniakea Point. Honu Guardians remained with the small ( 58.7 cm Straight Carapace Length) turtle for hours waiting for the responder. The turtle was taken to the veterinarian in Kaneohe and the fishing line and hook removed. Seventeen days later, after being treated with antibiotics, microchipped in the back flipper and receiving the white " E-4" Mototool on both sides of its shell, the turtle was released at the Kawainui Canal on the Windward side. Within a week, the turtle was reported back in the tidepool at Laniakea and swimming close to shore. On November 30, 2008 E-4 hauled out onto the beach following L-24 Kuhina, becoming the newest and youngest member of our basking Honu Ohana. Since then, E-4 spends most of its time swimming and feeding in the tide pools at Laniakea Point. The name E-4 comes from two of the last three digits of the implanted PIT tag.

Name: BRUTUS
Hawaiian name: NALUKAI - endured the storms of life
ADULT, MALE

Markings: PIT tags # 500E072F73 and # 41356C4857

Brutus, a 35-40 year old adult male, was one of the first turtles in 1999 to repeatedly bask in the sun at Laniakea Beach. Weighing approximately 166 pounds, L-1 was the first turtle to receive PIT ( Passive Integrated Transponder ) identification tags in his rear flippers. He spends as much time on the beach as he does in the ocean and is known to visitors from around the world. It was on a blustery March 15th evening that he came ashore, having lost half of his back flipper to a tiger shark, thus he was given the Shakespearean name from Julius Caesar " e tu Brutus, beware the Ides of March." Over the years he has been hooked, entangled, and nipped by predators, yet trusting enough to continue basking almost daily at Laniakea. He lives up to his Hawaiian name, Nalukai, "the one who has endured the storms of life."

Name:
Hawaiian name: HIWAHIWA - precious, favorite
ADULT, FEMALE

Markings: PIT tags # 422D536E6C and # 4233400066

HiwaHiwa, approximately 35 years old, is a healthy adult female, weighing 212 pounds. L-2 has a fissure or "crack" on the top of her shell resulting from an old injury, which took place in 2001. The fissure has completely mended from inside the turtle's body. No one knows for sure what caused HiwaHiwa's injury, however most likely she collided with a speeding boat or jet ski. The veterinarian repaired HiwaHiwa's shell with an acrylic dental patch. In June of 2002, HiwaHiwa surprised everyone when she was seen nesting and laying eggs 500 miles northwest of Laniakea at the French Frigate Shoals. L-2 migrated again during the 2010 nesting season. She was last seen on Oahu at Laniakea on April 23,2010. After 32 days at sea, HiwaHiwa arrived at the French Frigate Shoals and lay her first clutch of eggs on June 10th. Data harvested from L-2's TDR ( Time Depth Recorder) reveals she made a record breaking open ocean night dive of 170 meters ( 570 feet), the deepest in green sea turtle history. Eventhough she was not on the ocean floor, scientist theorize HiwaHiwa may have been feeding on mid level pyrosomes. Her last satellite signal was received on August 5th and hope faded that she would return to her feeding zone on Oahu. On September 6th, L-2 hauled onto the sand at Laniakea Beach, her satellite antennae broken off.* E Komo Mai* ~ Welcome Home, HiwaHiwa!

Name: SAPPHIRE
Hawaiian name: KAPA'EA -sapphire
ADULT, FEMALE

Markings: PIT tags #4347691B2D and #4358740927

Sapphire, an adult female over 35 years old, is recognized by her beautifully rounded carapace (shell) which measures 95 cm (Curved Carapace Length). L-3 spends most of her days feeding on the limu(algae) just offshore of Laniakea and basks ashore approximately 6 days each month. During the 2008 nesting season, Sapphire completed the 1000 mile migration to the French Frigate Shoals, departing Laniakea in April and returning in August.

Name: OLIVIA-DAWN
Hawaiian name: IPO - sweetheart
ADULT, FEMALE

Markings: PIT tags # 435B6A124B and # 435C27255A

Olivia-Dawn, a large adult female, spends 1/3 of her days basking in the sun at Laniakea Beach. Presently, she weighs 204 pounds. In 2004, L-4 migrated to the nesting beaches of the French Frigate Shoals, departing Laniakea Beach on March 13th. It took Olivia 35 days to swim 500 miles. During the first 20 days of her migration, she averaged 16 deep ocean dives each evening , with the maximum depth of one dive recorded at 135 meters. Olivia returned safely to her feeding area at Laniakea on September 17th.

Name: ISABELLA
Hawaiian name: KILA KILA- majestic
ADULT, FEMALE

Markings: PIT tags #435B6D724E and #4367476B71

In 2007 and 2011, Isabella completed her 1000 mile journey to the nesting beaches of the French Frigate Shoals. She has over 40 barnacles on her very rounded shell.

Name: OAKLEY
Hawaiian name: ME ALOHA- the beloved
ADULT, MALE

Markings: PIT tags #433D493D66 and #433F397534

Oakley, approximately 25 years old, spends 25% of his days basking on the beach at Laniakea.

Name: WOOLEY-BULLY
Hawaiian name: LOPEKA O HOLOKAI- Roger the seafarer
ADULT, MALE

Markings: PIT tags #4359054568 and #435B5D5F49

Wooley Bully, one of the largest males to bask at Laniakea Beach, is approximately 35 years old. He is distinquished not only by his thick, long tail, but also by his shark bitten left rear flipper, which is 1/3 missing. In 2004, L-7 completed a 1000 mile migration to the mating and nesting areas of the French Frigate Shoals. He swam to the isolated atoll in 25 days and returned hastily to his feeding grounds off Laniakea Beach in 21 days.

Name: KUAI
Hawaiian name: MAHINA- moon
ADULT, FEMALE

Markings: PIT tags #433F403720 and #435C3911D

KUAI is Laniakea’s elusive adult female night basker. L-8 sometimes hauls out onto the sand at dusk and is rarely seen on the beach during daylight hours. Since the last 3 digits of Mahina’s PIT tag numbers are 720, she was named after the call letters of Kauai’s radio station 720-KUAI, which broadcasts nightly from the Garden Isle of Kauai to the North Shore of Oahu.

Name: SQUIRT
Hawaiian name: LELE
MATURING, MALE

Markings: PIT tags # 438146551 and #435C2C7A32

Squirt was one of the first young subadult baskers to begin coming up at Laniakea in 2003. Approximately 25 years old, L-10 has a distinctive way of hauling out onto the beach high on his front flippers. In 2008, his tail began noticeably growing longer and thicker, confirming his male gender. Called Lele, L-10 has both the left and right medial scutes missing, but healed, on either side of his tail. Some have commented that his back scutes look like “buck teeth.”

Name: GENBU
Hawaiian name: KUPONO- the worthy one
MATURING, MALE

Markings: PIT tags # 4250034951 and # 442E084F24

Genbu weighs approximately 157 pounds and is about 30 years old. He disappeared from the shores of Laniakea in 2004. A year later he hauled out onto the beach with a large fibropapailloma tumor on his left jaw hinge and tumors on his neck and eyes. He was successfully treated by the veterinarian with Dermex in 2005 and again in 2007. L-11 has a distinguishably flat scute on top of his shell. In 2009, Genbu again disappeared for over a year. He returned to Laniakea in 2011 with over 20 barnacles on his shell.

Name: MISSY
Hawaiian name: KAUILA
ADULT, FEMALE

Markings: PIT tags #4452766010 and #4454191827

Missy, also known as Kauila and L-12, is a large adult female. In 2004, she was seen 500 miles from the North Shore of Oahu on Little Gin Island, in the Northwest Hawaiian Islands.

Name:
Hawaiian name: MANA- spiritual power
ADULT, FEMALE

Markings: PIT tags#424E523868 and #424D247116 Metal tag # 10485 - Left Front Flipper

Mana, a large adult female, very rarely basks on the beach at Laniakea. In 2004, a TDR ( Time Depth Recorder) was attached to the left side of her shell. The data collected from a TDR provides the scientist with diving and basking behavior. In 2004 she migrated and nested at the French Frigate Shoals.

Name:
Hawaiian name: PUKALANI-YUKA- heavenly opening
ADULT, FEMALE

Markings: PIT tags #413E196E1C and # 4136321B65

Pukalani, one of Laniakea’s largest female adult baskers, first became known to the scientist in 2000 when spotted nesting on East Island in the French Frigate Shoals. For many years, L-18 enjoyed feeding on the limu ( algae ) between Pu’ena Point and Laniakea, and was frequently seen basking in the sand along this 2 mile stretch of Kawailoa Beach. In February 2008, the scientist attached a satellite tag and TDR ( Time Depth Recorder) to Pukalani’s shell. On April 7, 2008 she departed Laniakea, becoming the first Hawaiian green sea turtle to be tracked by Argos satelitte telemetry from the feeding area of the North Shore of Oahu, to the nesting beaches of the French Frigate Shoals. After 29 days, L-18 arrived at the French Frigate Shoals. On May 30th, observers noted that Pukalani’s left front flipper had been amputated, presumably by a tiger shark. Depite the disability, Pukalani successfully nested on June 10th. A few days later, her satellite tag ceased transmitting. Hope remains that Pukalani will one day return to Laniakea.

Name: SCALLOP
Hawaiian name: KAUHI’NIHONIHO-scalloped shell
ADULT, Maturing Male

Markings: PIT tag # 4453784E23

Scallop, a maturing male, spends approximately 10 days a month basking at Laniakea. L-19’s beautifully rounded shell is 74.5 cm long ( Straight Carapace Length) and has a scalloped edge to the right of his tail. The right rear lateral scute is missing, yet healed.

Name: HONEY GIRL
Hawaiian name: HONE U'I
ADULT, FEMALE

Markings: PIT # 502E4C2703

Honey Girl, approximately 35-40 years old, began regularly hauling out onto the North Shore beach in 2005. As the largest adult female turtle of our Laniakea Ohana (family), Honey Girl weighed approximately 250 pounds and was 94.5 cm long ( Straight Carapace Length) . Before coming to Laniakea, L-20 was known to the marine scientists on East Island in the French Frigate Shoals, the largest atoll in the Northwest Hawaiian Islands. In 2000 she had migrated 500 miles from Oahu to East Island to mate and nest. While there, the researchers implanted a microchip, the size of a grain of rice, into her left hind flipper. This PIT ( Passive Integrated Transponder) allowed the scientists to identify her throughout the Hawaiian Archipelago , as she migrated from the foraging areas of the Main Hawaiian Islands to the nesting beaches of the Northwest Hawaiian Islands, Honey Girl was also known by her Hawaiian name of "Hone U'i", because of her exquisite honey amber shell, and L-20, as she was the twentieth turtle to repeatedly come ashore at Laniakea to bask. Data collected by the dedicated Malama na Honu volunteer Honu Guardians reveals that Honey Girl basked on the beach 11% of each year at Laniakea Beach. On July 19, 2008 Honey Girl was discovered slaughtered at Laniakea Beach. She had been buried in the sand upside down, with a flipper and breast plate maliciously removed. The evening before, this innocent, defenseless turtle had been basking under the full moon.

Name:
Hawaiian name: PUNAHELE- the favorite
ADULT, FEMALE

Markings: PIT tag# 485348747E

Punahele, an adult female, spends approxinmately 4 days a month basking at Laniakea. L-21 has a quarter-sized puka (hole) on the 2nd right lateral scute of her carapace. L-21 Punahele and L-4 Olivia Dawn are often paired coming onto the sand together.

Name: TRIPOD
Hawaiian name: PAKOLU- in threes
ADULT, MALE

Markings: PIT tags #424E617752 and #42500G022E

Tripod, an adult male, basks occasionally in the summer on the exposed coral shelf. His right rear flipper is missing, presumably amputated as a result of entanglement with monofilament fishing line.

Name:
Hawaiian name: NOHEA KAMAKANA- fine gift
ADULT, MALE

Markings:

L-23 seldom basks at Laniakea, but now prefers to come up in the private sandy cove in front of Jocko's surf break, 1/4 mile from Laniakea.

Name:
Hawaiian name: KUHINA- the ambassador
ADULT, MALE

Markings: PIT tag # 470A1A1211

Kuhina is our largest male basker, with a shell measuring 91.4 cm (Straight Carapace Length). He spends approximately 4 days each month on the beach and prefers to bask in the rocky, sunny southwestern end of Laniakea Beach. Almost a twin to L-7 (Wooley-Bully), Kuhina may be distinguished by his uninjured, intact rear flippers.

Name: Clawdette
Hawaiian name: KAINANI - beautiful one of the ocean
ADULT, FEMALE

Markings: PIT tags# 470A16424D and 45292E320C

Kainani has a very rounded shell and a visible "claw" and notched quarter-sized half-moon missing piece from her left rear flipper. L-25, an adult female, usually basks on the luscious green limu/coral shelf on the Southwestern side of Laniakea.

Name:
Hawaiian name: KEKOA- the brave one
JUVENILE, UNKNOWN

Markings: PIT tag# 45256C0C49

First coming up to bask at Laniakea in March 2010, this young turtle ( approximately 10-15 years old) has a shell measuring 55 centimeters. L-26 seems to prefer the company of other turtles while basking, often nestling close to Sapphire and Olivia-Dawn.

Name:
Hawaiian name: KULIHI- hooked, but got away
ADULT, MALE

Markings: PIT tags# 48533C7B23 and 48515A5A69

Kulihi first appeared on the beach in July 2010 with a large fishing hook in his neck. Through the efforts of the Honu Guardians, NOAA`s Marine Turtle Rescue Program, a Kaneohe veterinarian and the Waialua firemen, Kulihi was rescued, treated and released at Laniakea.Kulihi is approximately 30 years old and weighs about 210 pounds.

Name: Iron Man
Hawaiian name: Hao`okanaka
SUBADULT, UNKNOWN

Markings: L-28 has a very rounded carapace and indentations on the top shell scutes.

L-28, our newest basker, first hauled out late in the summer of 2010.This subadult is presently basking 4-5 days a week at Laniakea and was named in honor of legendary surfer, Andy Irons.