The Monachus-Guardian — Headlines-News-Articles — 2008-2018
Dedicated to Monk Seals and their Threatened Habitats
Orphaned Mediterranean monk seal ‘Nefeli’ was released into the National Marine Park of Alonissos, Northern Sporades today, following a traditional parting ceremony held in the fishing village of Steni Vala.
Rescued as a week-old pup on the Ionian island of Kefalonia on 14 October 2009, the female seal then underwent three and a half months of treatment at the MOm rehabilitation centre in Steni Vala.
Recently released from her temporary confinement in a specially-constructed pen in Gökova Bay, Turkey, orphaned seal Badem wasted little time swimming off to Greece [see New cage built for Badem]. Her first known port of call was the eastern Aegean island of Rhodes, and the popular port of Lindos.
Greek NGO MOm was alerted to the seal’s presence on 21 January 2010 by the Hydrobiological Station of Rhodes. Observers reported the animal displaying a range of unusual behaviours, including resting on small fishing boats in the harbour, and allowing people to pet it.
Following contact and information exchange with their Turkish counterparts SAD-AFAG (which undertook the rescue and rehabilitation of the orphaned seal in association with the SRRC of Pieterburen, the Netherlands), MOm dispatched its own experienced rescue staff to Rhodes in order to assess the situation, liaise with local bodies, and formulate a range of possible actions to deal with the ‘problem’ seal.
A young Mediterranean monk seal called Nefeli takes a last look at the conservationists who found the orphan on a beach on the Ionian island of Cephalonia last October before her release [on Saturday 30 January 2010]. The seal, which was 10 days old when she was found, has been cared for by staff at the offices of the Hellenic Society for the Study and Protection of the Monk Seal (MOm) on Alonissos in the Sporades group of islands.
An orphaned new-born Monachus monachus was found stranded late in the afternoon of Wednesday 14th of October, at the beach of Assos in Kefalonia island, by local residents. MOm’s Rescue team travelled immediately to the area and examined the 10 day female pup that was still alone at the beach, lost from its mother following the severe storms of the last few days. The animal was found dehydrated and had visible injuries on its body, probably form the wave action on the rocky coast. MOm is the Greek NGO working actively, over the last decades, to conserve the Mediterranean monk seal, a critically endangered species with less than 600 individuals remaining throughout the world
The young seal was named “Nefeli” by the local residents and volunteers, that found her helpless and stood guard overnight, until MOm’s team arrived to the area. MOm’s specialists provided first aid to Nefeli and, assisted by the Port Police officers of Fiskardo, prepared the pup for its immediate and safe transportation to the Rescue and Rehabilitation Centre of MOm at Steni Vala, Alonissos, within the National Marine Park of Alonnisos, Northern Sporades.
Upon its arrival at MOm’s Rescue and Rehabilitation Centre and the completion of the first veterinary tests, MOm’s staff, in collaboration with the Veterinary School of the University of Thessaloniki, will put Nefeli in an intensive veterinary therapy and rehabilitation program, The first critical phase includes the gradual provision of fish porridge, as there is still no substitute of maternal milk for the Mediterranean monk seal.
The treatment and rehabilitation program of a Mediterranean monk seal pup lasts approximately 5 months and if it is completed successfully the animal is released healthy back to its natural environment. The complete rescue, treatment and rehabilitation procedures all follow strict international protocols. The whole process is long and demanding for both Nefeli and the people involved, with several tests, continuous treatment, around the clock feedings and hard physical work. But MOm’s specialized personnel, the various expert collaborators and especially the volunteers assisting, are all optimistic and determined to make their best to see Nefeli healthy.
MOm would like to thank the Port Police Authority of Fiskardo and all the local supporters for their valuable contribution in the effort to rescue the new-born monk seal pup.
If you would like to support Nefeli’s rescue and treatment program, do visit MOm’s site www.mom.gr.
MOm (the Hellenic Society for the Study and Protection of the Monk Seal) has announced the publication of a national conservation strategy for the species to be implemented between 2009 and 2015.
Prepared by marine mammalogist Giuseppe Notarbaratolo di Sciara in association with MOm’s own researchers, the Strategy has now been submitted to the Greek authorities and the European Commission, in the hope that its various recommendations will be officially adopted and implemented.
The report can be downloaded from MOm’s website.
Notarbartolo di Sciara, G., S. Adamantopoulou, E. Androukaki, P. Dendrinos, A.A. Karamanlidis, V. Paravas, S. Kotomatas. 2009. National strategy and action plan for the conservation of the Mediterranean monk seal in Greece, 2009 – 2015. MOm, Athens: 1–19.
Orphaned monk seal pup ‘Artemis’ has been found dead on Skiathos in the Northern Sporades.
The body was discovered on 14 May 2009, floating in Skiathos harbour. It was transferred the same day to Athens for necropsy, conducted by Prof. Dr. Thijs Kuiken, a veterinary pathologist specialising in marine mammals from Erasmus University, Rotterdam.
The necropsy established that Artemis was in excellent nutritional condition and overall health, with a body weight normal for her age. There was clear evidence that the seal had died as a result of drowning – most probably the result of becoming entangled in fishing gear.