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Monk Seals in Post-Classical History

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Monk Seals in Post-Classical History Monk Seals in Post-Classical History The role of the Mediterranean monk seal (Monachus monachus) in European history and culture, from the fall of Rome to the 20th century William M. Johnson Mededelingen No. 39 2004 NEDERLANDSCHE COMMISSIE VOOR INTERNATIONALE NATUURBESCHERMING Mededelingen No. 39 i NEDERLANDSCHE COMMISSIE VOOR INTERNATIONALE NATUURBESCHERMING Netherlands Commission for International Nature Protection Secretariaat: Dr. H.P. Nooteboom National Herbarium of the Netherlands Rijksuniversiteit Leiden Einsteinweg 2 Postbus 9514, 2300 RA Leiden Mededelingen No. 39, 2004 Editor: Dr. H.P. Nooteboom PDF edition 2008: Matthias Schnellmann Copyright © 2004 by William M. Johnson ii MONK SEALS IN POST-CLASSICAL HISTORY The role of the Mediterranean monk seal (Monachus monachus) in European history and culture, from the fall of Rome to the 20th century by William M. Johnson Editor, The Monachus Guardian www.monachus-guardian.org email: [email protected] iii iv TABLE OF CONTENTS MONK SEALS IN POST-CLASSICAL HISTORY ......................................................III ABSTRACT ......................................................................................................................... VII ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ........................................................................................................ VII MONK SEALS IN POST-CLASSICAL HISTORY ..............................................................................1 AN INTRODUCTION TO THE SPECIES ......................................................................1 AN INTRODUCTION TO THE AGE UNDER STUDY ................................................3 RESULTS AND DISCUSSION ..................................................................................... 14 Monk seals in myth and legend ...................................................................................... 14 Human attitudes ..............................................................................................................21 Distribution and abundance ............................................................................................30 Habitat .............................................................................................................................34 Exploitation and hunting ................................................................................................ 39 Hunting methods ............................................................................................................ 40 Seal hunting at the Rio de Oro ....................................................................................... 41 Seal hunting in the Canary Islands .................................................................................44 Seal hunting in Madeira ................................................................................................. 46 Seal hunting in the Azores ............................................................................................. 47 Seal hunting in the Mediterranean ................................................................................. 48 Furs, leather and oil ........................................................................................................ 48 Food ................................................................................................................................ 50 Superstitions ................................................................................................................... 51 Medicinal uses ................................................................................................................ 53 Live capture and captivity .............................................................................................. 57 Museum supply ...............................................................................................................63 Science in captivity .........................................................................................................68 CONCLUDING REMARKS ......................................................................................... 83 REFERENCES ............................................................................................................... 86 v vi Abstract The role of the Mediterranean monk seal Monachus monachus in the history, culture and economy of the Mediterranean region has long remained obscure and subject to er- ror and contradiction. In order to extend historical knowledge of the species beyond the time-frame covered in our companion publication, Monk Seals in Antiquity, a review of the available literature was undertaken covering the period from the fall of Rome to the 20th century. This research indicates that the monk seal in the Mediterranean continued to be exploited for its fur, oil, meat and perceived medicinal properties well into the Dark Ages and the Renaissance, albeit on a much-reduced scale than the exploitation witnessed during the Roman era. The species also continued to be a target of Mediterranean fish- ers, angered over reduced catches and damaged nets. Elsewhere, large, newly-discovered colonies in the eastern Atlantic off the coast of Africa became a lucrative if short-lived industry for French, Portuguese and Spanish explorers. In the Mediterranean, sustained persecution of surviving groups, coupled with increasing human disturbance and dete- rioration of habitat, appears to have acted selectively against colony formation, leading to an inexorable decline and fragmentation of the population. Although described as ‘rare’ by science in 1779, the species continued to be a target for collectors from zoos and museums until the early 20th century, when extinctions along broad stretches of coastline first became apparent. Acknowledgements I would like to thank the following individuals for their invaluable assistance to me during the preparation of this monograph: – Matthias Schnellmann (The Monachus Guardian): library research, translations (particularly from German and French), graphic design and photography. – David J.L. Johnson: translations (Serbo-Croat, Russian, Latin). Thanks are also due to the following individuals for their help in providing source material, historical back- ground information, and also for sharing their scientific knowledge of the monk seal and its conservation: Jasna Antalovic, Grupa Sredozemna Medvjedica, Zagreb, Croatia; Xisco Avella, Palma de Mallorca, Spain; Klaus Barthelmess, Cologne, Germany; Peter J.H. van Bree, Zoological Museum, University of Amsterdam, the Netherlands; Panos Dendrinos, MOm, Athens, Greece; Manel Gazo, Fundació CRAM, Catalonia, Spain; Harun Güçlüsoy, SAD-AFAG, Foça, Turkey; Sheryl Fink, IMMA, Guelph, Canada; Alexandros Karamanlidis, Thessaloniki, Greece; Cem O. Kiraç, SAD-AFAG, Ankara, Turkey; Costas Mavrikis, Historical and Folklore Museum, Alonissos, Greece; Henrique Costa Neves, Câmara Municipal do Funchal, Madeira; Teresa Pastor, Universitat de Barcelona, Spain; Rosa Pires, Parque Natural da Madeira, Funchal, Madeira; Vrassidas Zavras, MOm, Athens, Greece. I also thank David M. Lavigne (IFAW, Canada), for his encouragement and support during early drafts of the monograph. Finally, additional thanks are also due to Peter J.H. van Bree, David J.L. Johnson and Matthias Schnellmann for their helpful and constructive criticism on various drafts of the ms. Research and preparation of this monograph was partially funded by the International Fund for Animal Welfare and the Van Tienhoven Foundation. vii viii MONK SEALS IN POST-CLASSICAL HISTORY The role of the Mediterranean monk seal (Monachus monachus) in European history and culture, from the fall of Rome to the 20th century William M. Johnson AN INTRODUCTION TO THE SPECIES Despite intensive exploitation during the Roman era, including the probable eradica- tion of most large seal herds occupying vulnerable open beaches, the Mediterranean monk seal (Monachus monachus Hermann 1779) continued to occupy a wide geographical range until the mid-20th century (Figs. 1 & 2). Colonies were found throughout the Mediterranean, the Marmara and Black Seas (King, 1956). The species also frequented the Atlantic coast of Africa, as far south as Mauritania, Senegal and the Gambia (Israëls, 1992), as well as the Atlantic islands of Cape Verde (Ronald & Healey, 1976), Madeira, the Canary Islands and the Azores (Brasseur et al., 1997; Johnson & Lavigne, 1999a). Historically, several interrelating factors have been implicated in its decline. In terms of direct killing, the seal has been a target of hunters since the Stone Age (Clottes & Courtin, 1994; Johnson & Lavigne, 1999a). Although hunting on an industrial scale peaked in the Mediterranean basin during the Roman era, and in the Atlantic dur- Fig. 1. Historical range of Monachus monachus within the Mediterranean, Marmara, and Black Seas. 1 Fig. 2. Historical range of Monachus monachus in the north-eastern Atlantic. ing the Renaissance, subsistence exploitation of the animal for its pelt and oil persisted in some areas well into the 20th century. Similarly, persecution by fishermen, who see the seal as a convenient scapegoat for dwindling catches and damaged nets, was first recorded in the ancient world. Such hostil- ity is also evident in writings from the Middle Ages and Renaissance, and eradication of the animals as fish-stealing, net-destroying pests continues to be cited today as a major Fig. 3. Current distribution of Monachus monachus. 2 cause of mortality, particularly in the eastern
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