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Vol. 10 (2): November 2007



Revealing secrets of the Mediterranean monk seal

Panagiotis Dendrinos, Alexandros Karamanlidis and Vangelis Paravas



A bird’s eye view of the Kimolos Natura 2000 site.

It is well known among marine mammalogists that the rarity of the Mediterranean monk seal makes the study of the biology, ecology and behaviour of the species an extremely difficult task. Also, in contrast to other Pinnipeds that give birth and suckle their pups on open beaches or on pack ice, often forming large reproductive colonies, Mediterranean monk seals give birth in dark and secluded caves, where they can only with difficulty be observed by humans. As a result, important aspects of the life cycle of the species, such as pupping and lactation, which in other species have been studied systematically for years, are still poorly understood, thus significantly limiting our knowledge on basic aspects of the species’ biology and behaviour. On the other hand, such information is essential in order to design and implement effective conservation and management actions.

Ongoing technological developments, especially in the field of recording, transmitting and storing digital images have provided biologists with new tools for studying rare and secretive species such as the Mediterranean monk seal. According to the latest scientific information, more than half of the world’s population of this endangered species, which does not exceed 600 individuals, survives in Greece. Although small in size, Greece possesses an extensive coastline of more than 15,000km, as well as 4000 islands and islets and numerous sea caves. According to information collected through the Rescue and Information Network, that MOm has been operating since 1990, the species remains widely distributed throughout mainland coasts and islands of the country. Important reproductive areas for the species have been identified and closely monitored by MOm researchers at the Northern Sporades, at the islands of Kimolos-Polyaigos in the Cyclades and the islands of Karpathos-Saria in the Dodecanese.

As members of the MOm research team, in the summer of 2003 we designed and installed, for the first time in Greece, an automatic video surveillance system in a seal breeding cave at the island of Piperi, in the core zone of the National Marine Park of Alonnisos, Northern Sporades. This first attempt to remotely monitor the species proved a success, and rare images of seals interacting were collected. The results of this research project have recently been published in the scientific journal Aquatic Mammals [A video surveillance system for monitoring the endangered Mediterranean monk seal: PDF pdf 771KB].

This year, as part of a programme carried out in cooperation with the Cyclades Prefectural Administration, we installed a second video surveillance system at the island of Kimolos. Kimolos is a beautiful volcanic island in the south-western Cyclades with a striking  landscape and numerous sea caves. In these sea caves and the ones of neighbouring Polyaigos, an equally important population of Mediterranean monk seals finds shelter. The annual birth rate is 7-8 pups. Our main objectives in installing the video surveillance system at Kimolos were twofold. The first was the collection of data on the reproductive behaviour of the species. The second, of equal, if not of greater importance, was to bring this rare mammal closer to the general public and especially to children. This would be achieved by broadcasting images from within the dark cave to a specially designed educational website.


Installing the video surveillance system on Kimolos.

In June this year, we installed the surveillance system in cooperation with an expert team of technicians. The selection of the time and location of the installation was based on detailed and long-term research data, as well as our extensive knowledge of the area. In fact, the first survey of monk seal shelters in the Kimolos-Polyaigos island complex was carried out by MOm in 1992, which emphasised the area’s importance to the survival of the species. Following that, in 1997, a local monitoring programme was established, through which detailed data on the use of the caves by the monk seal population was obtained. The cave chosen for the installation of the surveillance system had an annual birth rate of 2-3 pups. The month of June was chosen as the most suitable for installing the system, our data indicating that cave use during this time was negligible. In this way, disturbance to the animals during installation could be kept to an absolute minimum.

The video surveillance system operates on a 24-hour basis and is totally autonomous, with energy being provided by solar panels. It consists of three cameras, one of which is remote controlled; the cameras are connected to a hard drive which stores all recorded data. A satellite connection on site transmits the images to the Internet, thus providing an opportunity to view events in the cave in real time from anywhere on the planet. It also gives us researchers the opportunity to operate the remote controlled camera and to point and zoom it to any point of particular interest.


The surveillance system was installed at a cave with an annual birth rate of 2-3 pups.

The first visit to the cave by a monk seal took place in August and since then cave usage has increased steadily. Up until the end of October, when this article was written, the presence of at least nine different individuals was documented. At the same time, unique images of the reproductive biology and behaviour of the species were recorded. More importantly, for the first time in the Mediterranean sea, it was possible to witness the birth of two Mediterranean monk seals, to document the behaviour of mothers when protecting their pups against bad weather conditions, and also against other intruding monk seals. And all this, without disturbing the animals!

So far, the use of remote video surveillance systems in the Northern Sporades and Kimolos has shown that this methodology is an amazing tool in studying this rare species, but also in educating and bringing the conservation message to the wider public. The ongoing advances in modern technology, the introduction of new and more advanced equipment, as well as decreasing costs, predict a rosy future for this methodology. An essential requirement for its successful application, however, is the detailed knowledge of the area where the surveillance system will be installed and the availability of the necessary background data. These requirements ensure that where and when such a system is installed disturbance to the animals will be avoided, thus increasing the project’s likelihood of success.



Mediterranean monk seal birth.
View video.

Mother-pup interaction.
View video.


The authors would like to acknowledge the Hellenic Ministry of Rural Development and Food, the Prefecture of Cyclades, the Municipality of Kimolos, the Port Police Authority of Milos, the Zoological Museum of Athens University, especially Prof. A. Legakis and Mr Charalambos Sardis, and Hellas Sat, particularly Stella Ilioudi.



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Copyright © 2007 Panagiotis Dendrinos, Alexandros Karamanlidis, Vangelis Paravas, The Monachus Guardian. All Rights Reserved