This name can be literally translated as dog-(that)-feels about in search of something. It is used here in reference to the ʻīlioholoikauaua (Hawaiian monk seal). Given the challenges with low survival rates facing the monk seals at Kānemilohaʻi, naming this species in recognition of the monk seal adds a supportive element to the seal’s environment. Precedent for the application of the concept of ʻīlio to a sea lettuce species can be found in the traditional name ʻīliohaʻa. The recommended name, ʻīliohāhā, diverges from the traditional form in the use of hāhā, which references new information that appears to reveal (from the critter-cam) that one of the foraging techniques the ʻīlioholoikauaua utilizes is targeting and overturning rocks with limu growing atop (much more is still to be understood of this behavior).
