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Mediterranean Monk Seal

Mammals

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The Mediterranean monk seal is a true seal in the family Phocidae and, as of 2026, survives in isolated subpopulations totaling an estimated 800 to 1,000 individuals across the Mediterranean, especially the Aegean Sea, the Madeira archipelago, and the Cabo Blanco area of the northeastern Atlantic spanning Mauritania and Western Sahara. It is believed to be the world's rarest pinniped species and the only living member of the genus Monachus, the family's other two monk seal species now placed in the genus Neomonachus.

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