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The Mediterranean Monk Seal Group (MMSG) in Zagreb (Grupa Sredozemna Medvjedica), together with its partner NGO in Albania, Aquarius, has won its grant application to the Regional Environmental Center for Central and Eastern Europe in Budapest, Hungary.

Priorities of the joint project, entitled Working for the Protection of the Mediterranean Monk Seal and its Habitats, include education, public awareness and the drawing up of detailed plans for former and potential habitats to become legally protected areas.

The MMSG has already conducted some provisional surveys in the Adriatic Sea, focusing on the former monk seal population of the Vis Archipelago (Monachus Science, Vol. 1:2). This research has suggested that habitats with low human disturbance (as seen on the islands of Palgruza, Svetac, Brusnik and Bisevo) are still suitable for potential repopulation.

In Albania, available data and information on potential habitats, indicates that the monk seal might still be present at some sites, but in very low numbers. Furthermore, surviving individuals in such areas face many risks. These habitats, similar to those found in Croatia, exist in the southern part of Albania (at Karaburuni and Reza e Kanalit). It is expected that the MMSG and Aquarius project will also be implemented in these areas.

The project’s main objectives are to:

• Ensure bio-geographical continuity in the species’ range, preserving or helping to restore connections between sub-populations and habitats at a national and international level.
• Determine the suitability and availability of monk seal habitats in the study area.
• Place under specific protection and management areas critical for the monk seal’s survival, as determined by the species’ ecological requirements and conservation needs.
• Contribute towards an improved understanding and technical knowledge of the biology and ecology of the species.
• Improve education, and increase public awareness.
• Create a permanent monitoring infrastructure for long-term follow up and management of Mediterranean monk seal populations and habitats within the project areas (with the possible adoption of such measures on a national scale).

The project, underway since April, is expected to last until the end of the summer in 2000. To date, conservation efforts have focused on education, particularly of children, with numerous lessons and workshops taking place on a kindergarten and elementary school level. From 21 January to 27 March, the MMSG also organised an exhibition on former and potential habitats of the Mediterranean monk seal in the Vis Archipelago, a display that also appeared in the ‘Eco-Library’ Medvescak in Zagreb.