Hawaiian archipelago in the context of Hawaiian–Emperor seamount chain

Hawaii (/hə.ˈwaɪ.i/ hə-WY-ee; Hawaiian: Hawaiʻi [hə.ˈvɐj.ʔi, hə.ˈwɐj.ʔi]) is an island state of the United States, in the Pacific Ocean about 2,000 miles (3,200 km) southwest of the U.S. mainland. One of the two non-contiguous U.S. states (along with Alaska), it is the only state not on the North American mainland, the only state that is an archipelago, the only state in the tropics, and one of the two U.S. states, along with Texas, that were internationally recognized sovereign countries before becoming U.S. states.

Hawaii consists of 137 volcanic islands that make up almost the entire Hawaiian archipelago (the exception is Midway Atoll). Spanning 1,500 miles (2,400 km), the state is physiographically and ethnologically part of the Polynesian subregion of Oceania. Hawaii's ocean coastline is consequently the fourth-longest in the U.S., at about 750 miles (1,210 km). The eight main islands, from northwest to southeast, are Niʻihau, Kauaʻi, Oʻahu, Molokaʻi, Lānaʻi, Kahoʻolawe, Maui, and Hawaiʻi, after which the state is named; the last is often called the "Big Island" or "Hawaiʻi Island" to avoid confusion with the state or archipelago. The uninhabited Northwestern Hawaiian Islands make up most of the Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument, the largest protected area in the U.S. and the fourth-largest in the world.

Maui is the second-largest island in the Hawaiian archipelago, at 727.2 square miles (1,883 km). It is the 17th-largest in the United States. Maui is one of Maui County's four sizable islands, along with Molokaʻi, Lānaʻi, and Kahoʻolawe.

In 2020, Maui had a population of 168,307, the third-highest of the Hawaiian Islands, behind Oʻahu and Hawaiʻi Island. Kahului is the largest census-designated place (CDP) on the island, with a 2020 population of 28,219. It is Maui's commercial and financial hub. Wailuku is the county seat and was the third-largest CDP as of 2010. Other significant populated areas include Kīhei (including Wailea and Makena in the Kihei Town CDP), Lāhainā (including Kāʻanapali and Kapalua in the Lāhainā Town CDP), and Upcountry Maui (including Makawao, Pukalani, Kula, and Ulupalakua), although Lāhainā was mostly destroyed by fire in 2023.

Monk seals are earless seals of the tribe Monachini. They are the only earless seals found in tropical climates. The two genera of monk seals, Monachus and Neomonachus, comprise three species: the Mediterranean monk seal, Monachus monachus; the Hawaiian monk seal, Neomonachus schauinslandi; and the Caribbean monk seal, Neomonachus tropicalis, which became extinct in the 20th century. The two surviving species are now rare and in imminent danger of extinction. All three monk seal species were classified in genus Monachus until 2014, when the Caribbean and Hawaiian species were placed into a new genus, Neomonachus.

Monk seals have a slender body and are agile. They have a broad, flat snout with nostrils on the top. Monk seals are polygynous, and group together in harems. They feed mainly on bony fish and cephalopods, but they are opportunistic. The skin is covered in small hairs, which are generally black in males and brown or dark gray in females. Monk seals are found in the Hawaiian archipelago, certain areas in the east Atlantic and Mediterranean Sea (such as Cabo Blanco and Gyaros island), and formerly in the tropical areas of the west Atlantic Ocean.