What do you get when you add one of the world’s rarest seals to one of the world’s most popular beaches? A big fence.

In the spring, a baby seal was born on the sparkling white sands of Kaimana Beach, Hawaii.

This is not just any seal. It’s a Hawaiian monk seal. That seal species has almost died out. It belongs on the “critically endangered” list.

Millions of visitors come to Kaimana Beach each year. When the seal pup showed up, officials fenced off a large stretch of the neighborhood. The fence protects mother seal Kaiwi and her pup.

It protects people too. Have you ever been told not to get between a mama bear and her cubs? You could say the same of a seal and her pups. Last year, a California tourist got too close to a mother-pup seal pair. The mama seal pulled the visitor underwater. She left cuts on the visitor’s face, arms, and back.

Scientists expected Kaiwi and her and her pup to stay together at Kaimana for five to seven weeks while the baby nurses. Monk seal mothers are protective of their pups during this period. Hawaii officials warn beach-goers. Wanna swim? Go to another beach!

Keeping people and seals apart also gives the pup space to learn to swim and find its own food.

Sami Broerman reads a book in a beach chair facing the green plastic fence. She picked a nearby hotel for her vacation because it had great beach access. She calls the fence “a bummer.”

“I respect it,” she says. “I think it’s great. It’s just—a little more beach view would be nice.”

Why? People need to think creatively to live well with animals.