Monachus monachus (Hermann 1779)

[Phoca] monachus Hermann 1779, Beschaft. Berlin Ges. Naturforsch. Fr., 4: 501.

Type Locality: "Dalmation Sea at Ossero." [Serbia and Montenegro] King (1956).

Vernacular Names: Mediterranean Monk Seal.

Synonyms: Monachus albiventer (Boddaert 1785); Monachus atlantica (Gray 1854); Monachus bicolor (Shaw 1800); Monachus crinita (Menis 1848); Monachus hermannii (Lesson 1828); Monachus isidorei (Lesson 1843); Monachus leucogaster (Péron and Lesueur 1816); Monachus mediterraneus Nilsson 1838 .

Distribution: Coastal regions of Mediterranean and Black Seas and NW Africa to Cape Blanc: Algeria, Balearic Isls, Cape Verde, Crete, Cyprus, France, Gambia, Greece, Italy, Lebanon, Mauritania, Morocco, Portugal, Russia, Sardinia, Senegal, Sicily, Spain, Tunisia, Turkey. status: CITES – Appendix I; U.S. ESA – Endangered; IUCN – Critically Endangered.

Conservation: albiventer (Boddaert, 1785); atlantica (Gray, 1854); bicolor (Shaw, 1800); crinita (Menis, 1848); hermannii (Lesson, 1828); isidorei (Lesson, 1843); leucogaster (Péron and Lesueur, 1816); mediterraneus Nilsson, 1838 .