Mediterranean monk seal: Where It Lives, Map & Facts

Where the Mediterranean monk seal lives – recorded in 3 countries, with quick facts from Wikidata and an introduction from Wikipedia.

Scientific name	Monachus monachus
Group	Seals, sea lions & walrus
Status	Vulnerable (Wikidata, IUCN category label)
Found in	3 countries
Continents	Europe
Class	Mammal
Order	Carnivora
Family	Phocidae

Where does the Mediterranean monk seal live?

Open-licence (CC0 / CC BY) wild records published on GBIF place the Mediterranean monk seal in 3 countries and territories across Europe.

Countries with at least a handful of records (a minimum share of the species’ records, to leave out vagrants and escapes). Records with coordinates only; captive and fossil records excluded.

Is the Mediterranean monk seal endangered?

The Mediterranean monk seal’s conservation status recorded in Wikidata is “Vulnerable” (an IUCN Red List category label). Source: Wikidata.

What kind of animal is the Mediterranean monk seal?

The Mediterranean monk seal (Monachus monachus) is a mammal in the order Carnivora and the family Phocidae, genus Monachus. (Taxonomy from Wikidata.)

About the Mediterranean monk seal

The Mediterranean monk seal (Monachus monachus) is a monk seal belonging to the family Phocidae. As of 2026, it is estimated that between 800 and 1000 individuals survive in isolated subpopulations in the Mediterranean, (especially) in the Aegean Sea, the archipelago of Madeira, and the Cabo Blanco area in the northeastern Atlantic Ocean spanning the border of Mauritania and Western Sahara. It is believed to be the world's rarest pinniped species. It is the only extant species in the genus Monachus, the other two monk seal species being in Neomonachus.

Text in “About” is quoted from the Wikipedia article Mediterranean monk seal (revision 1371073251), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Changes: lead section excerpted verbatim, formatting removed. Quick facts, taxonomy and status: Wikidata Q208549 (CC0). Countries and pin: GBIF.org occurrence records (CC0 / CC BY 4.0).