As many as 19 Mediterranean monk seals which are the region’s most endangered marine mammal species have been spotted within the sea waters of Cyprus in the past decade.
This is what latest data by the Mediterranean Monk Seal Monitoring Program in Cyprus shows.
It was brought to the attention of participants at a seminar on Wednesday titled “Mediterranean monk seal – An emblematic species of the Mediterranean. Past, Present and Future”.
It was organized by Peyia Municipality, Paphos district, in a bid to raise awareness on ‘Monachus monachus’ – the rarest of the 33 species of seals that exist in the world.
The mammal species is currently on the Red list of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).
Organisers are the Municipality in cooperation with the Agriculture and Environment Ministry and Mom non-governmental organization focusing on the protection and study of the Mediterranean monk seal.
The venue was Cap St Georges and Resort in Peyia and key speaker is Greek expert Panos Dendrinos who is the head of Mom and has over 40 years of experience in the study and protection of the Mediterranean monk seal.
