The Final PEIS for Hawaiian Monk Seal Recovery Actions was made available for public review from April 11 to May 12, 2014. The Preferred Alternative identified in the Final PEIS is Alternative 3, Limited Translocation. The Preferred Alternative does not include any translocation option that involves moving seals born in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands and releasing them in the main Hawaiian Islands. The Final PEIS is available at: https://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/pr/permits/eis/hawaiianmonkseal.htm.
NOAA Fisheries has issued the Record of Decision for the Final PEIS, which summarizes the alternatives considered, identifies the preferred alternative (Alternative 3, Limited Translocation) and why it was chosen, and identifies required mitigation and monitoring. NOAA Fisheries plans to implement Alternative 3 and permit and conduct the research and enhancement activities included in this alternative.
The early morning appearance of the monk seal aroused the interest of some drunken tourists, according to a report in Vecernji List, which reported that the tourists tried to force the monk seal back into the sea, before attempting to force it back into the sea by grabbing its tail. Their attempts failed, as local authorities were quickly on the scene to stop the actions of the tourists. [Read more at Digital Journal]
Dirk-Martin Scheel, Graham Slater, Sergios-Orestis Kolokotronis, Charles Potter, David Rotstein, Kyriakos Tsangaras, Alex Greenwood and Kristofer M. Helgen. 2014. Biogeography and taxonomy of extinct and endangered monk seals illuminated by ancient DNA and skull morphology, ZooKeys 409 (2014): 1-33. [Downloadable in various formats from Zookeys]
Abstract
Extinctions and declines of large marine vertebrates have major ecological impacts and are of critical concern in marine environments. The Caribbean monk seal, Monachus tropicalis, last definitively reported in 1952, was one of the few marine mammal species to become extinct in historical times. Despite its importance for understanding the evolutionary biogeography of southern phocids, the relationships of M. tropicalis to the two living species of critically endangered monk seals have not been resolved. In this study we present the first molecular data for M. tropicalis, derived from museum skins. Phylogenetic analysis of cytochrome b sequences indicates that M. tropicalis was more closely related to the Hawaiian rather than the Mediterranean monk seal. Divergence time estimation implicates the formation of the Panamanian Isthmus in the speciation of Caribbean and Hawaiian monk seals. Molecular, morphological and temporal divergence between the Mediterranean and “New World monk seals” (Hawaiian and Caribbean) is profound, equivalent to or greater than between sister genera of phocids. As a result, we classify the Caribbean and Hawaiian monk seals together in a newly erected genus, Neomonachus. The two genera of extant monk seals (Monachus and Neomonachus) represent old evolutionary lineages each represented by a single critically endangered species, both warranting continuing and concerted conservation attention and investment if they are to avoid the fate of their Caribbean relative.
The presence of monk seals around Madeira is no longer headline news. Here at the Parque Natural da Madeira Service (PNMS) we have collected almost a 1000 sightings of Mediterranean monk seals around the main island of Madeira since the year 2000. What is new though, is the behaviour of two adult males that began using areas frequented by humans, such as beaches or bathing complexes, marinas and ports. Since June 2013, we have collected 47 reports of these two seals in such areas, along the southeast coast of Madeira. Most of the sightings described the seals as resting in the sea or on land, but also hunting, and ignoring human presence, even if in some situations curiosity brought people very close to the animals.
This is not a common behaviour for this species. In the case of one of these two seals, named “Half”, who was found last August with a severe injury to his neck, his weakness, and the possibility that he was fed by people, could be one explanation [see Wounded Madeiran monk seal returns to the sea]. Another is that as these two seals were born on Madeira and not on the uninhabited Desertas islands, this resulted in an adaptation of behaviour towards human presence. Combined with knowledge of more sheltered places to rest and the advantage of being able to hunt in these areas without too much disturbance, it is a possibility!
“Half” resting on a Madeiran beach.
Generally the reaction of the people of Madeira to these surprising sightings is very positive – they inform the PNMS and the marine authorities. However, for the most part their perception is that the seals are ill and require veterinary treatment. As a precautionary measure, it is important to keep an eye on these seals in case an intervention should become necessary. So far, however, we are finding that the best intervention is none — just to create space for the seals.
Informing Madeiran people how to coexist with the monk seal is becoming all the more important.
Karamanlidis, A.A., S. Adamantopoulou, V. Paravas, M. Psaradellis, P. Dendrinos. 2013. Demographic structure and social behaviour of the unique Mediterranean monk seal (Monachus monachus) colony of the island of Gyaros. Poster presentation, in: 20th Biennial Conference of the Society for Marine Mammalogy. 10th December 2013, Dunedin, New Zealand. [PDF 5.1 MB]
“In this posture, it looked from the rear not dissimilar to a black monk …” — Johann Hermann, 1779
On 20 November we posted a “Pop Quiz” to draw attention to some of the explanations (many of them fanciful, it has to be said) that have been offered over the years for the origins of the monk seal’s name. To the question “How did the Monk Seal Find its Name?” the multiple choice answers were:
(1) Because the black seal with the white belly patch was reminiscent of the robes of a monastic community.
(2) Because the monk seal is shy and retiring, living a “monastic” lifestyle.
(3) Because of the folds of fat around the neck of the seal were reminiscent of a monk’s hood or scapular.
(4) Because the rows of seals stretched out lazily on the sands reminded Roman naturalist Pliny the Elder of a procession of hooded monks.
(5) None of the above.
The answer, we can now reveal, is: (5) None of the above.
The name ‘Monk’ seal was suggested by Johann Hermann in 1779, when the naturalist published the first modern scientific description of the species based on observations of a captive specimen found in a travelling show in Strasbourg. Hermann suggested naming the animal Münchs-Robbe (Phoca monachus), because he somewhat vaguely remembered a paper describing an animal known locally as moine in Marseille, which he concluded must be this same species. He was also reassured by contacts who had lived in Marseille that the animal was indeed called moine there. Wryly noting a monkish resemblance (the shape of the head and scapula-like shoulders) as the seal arched up on the pool edge, he judged it a well suited name, and saw no reason to change it.
Herman wrote (in German): “In this posture, it looked from the rear not dissimilar to a black monk, in the way that its smooth round head resembled a human head covered by a hood, and its shoulders, with the short, outstretched feet, imagined like two elbows protruding from a scapular, from which a long, unfolded, black robe flows down.”
Thomas Pennant, citing Herman as his source, mistranslated this in his History of Quadrupeds, Vol. 2, 1781: “When the animal is placed on its back, the skin of the neck folds like a monk’s hood.” This erroneous translation is most probably the source of the often repeated explanation (even by present-day biologists) that folds of fat observed around the neck are reminiscent of a monk’s hood — thus inspiring the name.
In Hermann’s day, the monk seal was also known by different colloquial names according to region and locale, for example simply as fokia in Greece, but elsewhere, amongst other variations, as sea bear, sea calf, sea dog, sea oxen and sea wolf. In his description of the monk seal, Hermann admits that he could not find the source of his recollection that the animal was known locally as moine in Marseille. A lead though, supporting Herman’s assumption that they are one and the same species, comes from the 19th century Dalmatian naturalist Spiro Brusina, who reported that Italian fishers knew it as monaco marino, the marine monk. Likewise, on the Dalmatian island of Vis, the popular name for the seal was morski fratar, the Sea Friar.
As to the reasons why the seal was named locally moine, monaco marino or morski fratar, we can currently only speculate (see Monk Seals in Post-Classical History, below, for further possible deductions). Perhaps some linguistic and cultural research might shed further light on that particular aspect of the puzzle. So far, although frequently reported, the historical record has not revealed any firm evidence linking the monk’s name to a solitary or ‘monastic’ lifestyle.
For those familiar with German, the original description of the monk seal by Johann Hermann is available online: Beschreibung der Münchs-Robbe, in Beschäftigungen der Berlinischen Gesellschaft Naturforschender Freunde 4 (XIX), 1779.
The Final PEIS for Hawaiian Monk Seal Recovery Actions was made available for public review from April 11 to May 12, 2014. The Preferred Alternative identified in the Final PEIS is Alternative 3, Limited Translocation. The Preferred Alternative does not include any translocation option that involves moving seals born in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands and releasing them in the main Hawaiian Islands. The Final PEIS is available at:
Dirk-Martin Scheel, Graham Slater, Sergios-Orestis Kolokotronis, Charles Potter, David Rotstein, Kyriakos Tsangaras, Alex Greenwood and Kristofer M. Helgen. 2014. Biogeography and taxonomy of extinct and endangered monk seals illuminated by ancient DNA and skull morphology, ZooKeys 409 (2014): 1-33. [Downloadable in various formats from 
Karamanlidis, A.A., S. Adamantopoulou, V. Paravas, M. Psaradellis, P. Dendrinos. 2013. Demographic structure and social behaviour of the unique Mediterranean monk seal (Monachus monachus) colony of the island of Gyaros. Poster presentation, in: 20th Biennial Conference of the Society for Marine Mammalogy. 10th December 2013, Dunedin, New Zealand. [