The Mediterranean monk seal was first classified as endangered in 1966 by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN). The Caribbean monk seal is already extinct in the 1950s. It is only the Hawaiian monk seal that shows the best chance of survival now.

SWIM LIKE A SEAL
   Reaching about 6 feet (1.8 m) in length and 400 pounds (182 kg), it is a speedy swimmer that can outmaneuver a shark. Monk seals feed at night mostly in shallow coastal waters and sleep on beaches during the heat of day, often digging down to lie in cooler, damp sand. They eat spiny lobsters, eels, octopus, and some reef fishes. Monk seals reproduce slowly, sometimes only every other year, starting at the age of four. Adult females, larger than the males, come ashore to give birth to one pup, then remain on the beach nursing and protecting the pup for up to six weeks.

THE SUN, THE SEA, THE SEAL
   Nearly 140 million people live along the Mediterranean Sea's 45,000 km of coastline. An equal number of tourists flood the area from May to October every year to enjoy the white sand beaches and warm waters. This shore loving, easy to approach seal was slaughtered in droves for food by early seafaring explorers and native peoples alike. It is still sometimes killed by fishers who see it as competition for food fish. Pollution, particularly human waste, fouls the water and kills the monk seal's food. Even after an 18 year clean up effort, still only 30 percent of the Mediterranean sea's coastal towns and cities had sewage treatment plants by 1993. In addition, tons of industrial and agricultural pollutants and sediments flow into the Mediterranean from its feeder rivers and streams. The shy monk seal is easily disturbed by humans, and most remaining Mediterranean monk seals come ashore only in small, hidden coastal caves and beaches. Continued population growth of Mediterranean countries brings increased beach use, boat traffic, and overfishing of the monk seal's prey. Long-line and net fisheries also injure and drown monk seals.

CONSERVATION
   Efforts to save the species emphasize research (tagging and monitoring wild seals) as well as the creation of protected areas. Campaigns to reduce pollution of the Mediterranean are being driven mostly by concern for human health, but these campaigns will benefit the monk seal also.