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Annotated Bibliography on Mediterranean Monk Seals (Monachus Monachus)

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Annotated Bibliography on Mediterranean Monk Seals (Monachus Monachus) ANNOTATED BIBLIOGRAPHY ON MEDITERRANEAN MONK SEALS (MONACHUS MONACHUS) Version 1.0 2002 Compiled by Alexandros A. Karamanlidis William M. Johnson Published by The Monachus Guardian www.monachus-guardian.org www.monachus.info ANNOTATED BIBLIOGRAPHY ON MEDITERRANEAN MONK SEALS (MONACHUS MONACHUS) Preface Overfishing, deliberate killing, pollution, deterioration and loss of habitat – these are among the main factors implicated in the dramatic decline and, in some cases, regional extinction of the Mediterranean monk seal, Monachus monachus. Although it was once known to inhabit most of the Mediterranean basin, the Black Sea, the Marmara Sea, and the Atlantic coast of NW Africa, the species disappeared from much of its former range during the latter half of the 20th century. With human expansion as its driving force, loss of habitat in particular appears to have taken a serious toll upon the species throughout its range. Historically, Mediterranean monk seals were known to inhabit open, sandy beaches or great, “arching caverns” whose characteristics favoured social interaction, breeding success and relative safety of unweaned pups from storm surges. Human persecution and harassment, however, and tourism’s relentless expansion into some of the last isolated and undisturbed reaches of the Mediterranean, have driven surviving monk seals to retreat into increasingly marginal habitat – often rocky caves and crevices that are incapable of meeting the biological needs of the species. By the mid-70s the World Conservation Union (IUCN) considered the Mediterranean monk seal to be one of world’s twelve most endangered species. Monachus monachus has also been described by the European Union as Europe’s most endangered marine mammal. Since they first began in earnest in the 1970s, Mediterranean monk seal conservation efforts have mainly focused on legislative mechanisms, scientific research, the creation of protected areas, and public awareness. Although it is also cited as a conservation priority, comparatively little attention has been paid to information exchange between the various groups and individuals working with and on behalf of monk seals around the world. Most articles concerning Monachus monachus are either published in conference proceedings normally printed only in limited numbers, or published in obscure journals that can boast only a very local distribution. This situation, coupled with the fact that articles tend to be written in a variety of different languages (English, French, Greek, Spanish, Turkish etc.), makes it difficult for interested parties to collect, and become acquainted with, the sum total of knowledge gathered to date on this critically-endangered species. It is precisely this accumulated knowledge, however, that is indispensable to the design and application of appropriate conservation measures for Monachus monachus. It was with these particular difficulties in mind that we decided to compile the Annotated Bibliography on Mediterranean monk seals (Monachus monachus). We hope that it will provide the Mediterranean monk seal conservation community with a powerful research tool in the protection of the species. Use of the Bibliography The Annotated Bibliography on Mediterranean monk seals currently consists of some 1300 references relating to the world’s most endangered Pinniped, Monachus monachus. During the compilation process, we consulted various existing works, including Ronald et al.1 (1976, 1983, 1991) 1 Ronald, K., L.M. Healey, P.J. Healey & L.J. Selley. 1976. An annotated bibliography on the Pinnipedia. ICES, Copenhagen. 1-785. Ronald, K., P.J. Healey, J.Dougan, L.J.Selley & L. Dunn. 1983. An annotated bibliography on the Pinnipedia. Supplement 1. ICES, Copenhagen. 1-346. Ronald, K., B.L. Gots, J.D. Lupson, C.J. Willings, & J.L. Dougan. 1991. An Annotated Bibliography of Seals, Sea Lions, and walrus. ICES. Copenhagen. 2 and the online bibliography of the Seal Conservation Society2 (2001). Existing bibliographies, however, were generally found to be dated and incomplete, often focusing on citations appearing only in widely circulating journals. In recognition of the potential value of accumulated knowledge to the conservation of this endangered species, we broadened our search to include lesser-known publications. Over a 3-year period, we contacted or personally visited public and private libraries in Greece, Turkey, Germany, Switzerland, the U.K., and Canada, both to gather new relevant citations and to check on the accuracy of existing references. Wherever possible, we also endeavoured to obtain copies of the publications concerned. To date, approximately 600 references have been obtained and checked for accuracy. These appear in black typeface in the Bibliography. The remaining citations have been gathered from various sources but, since they have so far been impossible to verify, they appear in grey typeface. The present work focuses on Mediterranean monk seal related material written after the first modern scientific description of Monachus monachus by the German naturalist Johann Hermann in 1779. For an extensive overview of the material written prior to Hermann’s work, consult Johnson & Lavigne 19993. The Annotated Bibliography on Mediterranean monk seals is being made available in cross- platform Adobe Acrobat PDF format. The electronic format offers distinct advantages over the paper- based alternative, not least of all the ability to fast-search the document according to author, year of publication, and published journal. In order to facilitate searches according to specific topics, keywords were assigned to every reference. The keyword list employed is based on the model compiled and used by the Seal Conservation Society in its own Seal Bibliography (see Annex I). This list was extended in order to facilitate reference searches according to geographical area (see Annex II). Lastly, in order to improve future editions of the Bibliography, we ask readers to report any citation errors or omissions they may find. New references are, of course, also welcome. Please contact us at one of the following email addresses: Alexandros A. Karamanlidis William M. Johnson [email protected] [email protected] Acknowledgements We extend our thanks and appreciation to the numerous individuals and institutions that assisted us during our work: • SAD-AFAG – Underwater Research Society – Mediterranean Seal Research Group, in particular Harun Güçlüsoy and Cem Kiraç for correcting and reviewing numerous Turkish references. • MOm – the Hellenic Society for the Study and Protection of the Monk Seal, for granting access to the organisation’s libraries in Athens and at the Biological Research Station of Gerakas, Alonnisos. • GRUMM – Grup d'Estudi i Conservació de Mamífers Marins, and particularly Manel Gazo. • Prof. Keith Ronald. • Parque Natural da Madeira, and particularly Rosa Pires. • The Seal Conservation Society, and particularly Peter Haddow for allowing us permission to use and reproduce the Society’s keyword list. • Nadia Carina Silva for correcting and reviewing Portuguese references. • Prof. A.N. Karamanlidis for correcting and reviewing French references. • Finally, we would like to thank the dedicated staff of libraries in Athens, Berlin, Bern, London, Thessaloniki and Manchester for their help in tracking down some of the more obscure monk seal references. 2 Seal Conservation Society http://www.pinnipeds.fsnet.co.uk/library.htm; accessed on the 10th January 2002. 3 Johnson, W.M., & D.M. Lavigne. 1999b. Monk Seals in Antiquity. The Mediterranean Monk Seal (Monachus monachus) in Ancient History and Literature. Mededelingen 35: 1-101. 3 Appendix I KEYWORDS General – GEN - General overview of species - Taxonomic classification, systematics, nomenclature, TAX evolutionary dispersal, phylogeny FOSS - Fossil records, archaeological finds GEOG - Bio- and zoogeography LIFE - Life history - Protection, conservation, endangered or rare species, PROT reintroduction, reserves, threats - Reference material inc. bibliographies, literature surveys, REF databases IDENT - Species identification LEGAL - Laws, regulations and agreements NARR - Narrative and fiction EDUC - Education, Careers <blank> - Unsure of specific topic / Non-specific article Biology (mainly) – BIOL - General biology, morphology, anatomy, physiology, biometry SKEL - Skeleton inc. teeth, tusks MUSC - Muscular system inc. all aspects of limbs, flippers and locomotion CIRC - Heart, circulation, haematology, endocrinology, lymphatic system INTER - Internal organs inc. liver, spleen, kidneys, brain (inc neurology) OUTER - Blubber, skin, fur, pelage - see also MOULT - Reproductive system inc. foetal biology, age at maturity, REPRO secondary sex ratio, breeding cycle - General nutrition and digestion inc. urinary and faecal output, DIG stomach contents RESP - Lungs and respiratory system ENERG - Energetics, metabolism, mass changes, exercise THERM - Thermoregulation and insulation FAST - General fasting and starvation - see also WEAN LIPID - Lipids, fats and oils MEAS - Weight, length and other body measurements, body composition - General senses inc. tactual discrimination, echo-location, taste, SENSE chemoreception HEAR - Ears and hearing, bio-acoustics SIGHT - Eyes and vision NASAL - Nose, snout and smell VIBR - Vibrissae GROW - Growth, development, ethology SLEEP - State of arousal - Intra- and inter-species population/individual differentiation and DIFF variation, genetic make-up WATER - Water balance inc. sea water drinking, glomerular
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