![\"CBD_Habitat_screen\"](\"http:\/\/monachus-guardian.org\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/09\/CBD_Habitat_screen-150x131.jpg\")
<\/a>In declaring the Mediterranean monk seal colony at Cap Blanc in Mauritania\/western Sahara “closed” [see blog<\/a>], is Spanish NGO CBD-Habitat edging ever closer to resurrecting a plan that would see seals artificially translocated to other areas? The theory is that this would minimise the risk to the colony posed by mass mortality events, while helping to recolonise areas historically occupied by the species. Unfortunately, as earlier abandoned attempts to translocate or captive breed monk seals proved, the devil is in the detail.<\/p>\nWith other signs indicating that a new translocation plan might already be on the drawing board, The Monachus Guardian has requested clarification from CBD-Habitat on no fewer than seven occasions, but has received no reply. Ironically, earlier, discredited and ultimately abandoned attempts to translocate monk seals \u2014 with all the attendant risks of seals being wounded or killed during capture and transport \u2014 were roundly condemned for their lack of transparency.<\/p>\n
The Monachus Guardian\u2019s view \u2014 shared by many involved in monk seal conservation \u2014\u00a0is that translocation should be examined carefully as a potential option in the recovery of the species, but only through wide and open consultation with the wider scientific and conservation community. While previous efforts to translocate or captive breed monk seals have routinely tried to sideline potential critics, others rightly insist that critics are precisely what are required in order to design a project that can highlight and mitigate potential risks. Pursuing controversial and potentially risky projects through the \u201cbackdoor\u201d does a disservice to the Mediterranean monk seal and conservation at large.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
COMMENT In declaring the Mediterranean monk seal colony at Cap Blanc in Mauritania\/western Sahara “closed” [see blog], is Spanish NGO CBD-Habitat edging ever closer to resurrecting a plan that would see seals artificially translocated to other areas? The theory is that this would minimise the risk to the colony posed by mass mortality events, while … <\/p>\n