Under bright but overcast skies, Mediterranean monk seal pup ‘Artemis’ was released into the protected waters of the National Marine Park of Alonissos, Northern Sporades on 11 April. After a brief ceremony attended by local well wishers, visiting dignitaries and supporters of MOm — the NGO spearheading monk seal conservation in Greece — Artemis was placed in a transport cage and put aboard the research vessel IFAW-Odyssia, for the 2.5 hour journey to Piperi, an island in the core zone of the 2200 sq km Marine Park. The IFAW-Odyssia was escorted by the patrol boat of the Marine Park’s management authority.
It was an exceptional event by any standards, yet even more so when one realises that the Mediterranean monk seal has been considered extinct in Spain and the Balearic Islands for more than half a century.