It is one of the 12 rarest mammals in the world. Mediterranean Monk Seals lived on the Mediterranean coast and the eastern Atlantic coast, from Portugal, the coast of West Africa to Senegal, with a population expressed in 1000s, until the beginning of the 20th century. However, due to false and overfishing, loss of habitat, and degradation of the marine ecosystem, the species' global distribution has narrowed and its population has declined.

The number of Mediterranean Monk Seals on earth does not exceed 400.

Seals make calm-loving, marine pollution-free zones their habitat. In Foça, the coastal town and district of Izmir, the areas they use as nests are usually caves located on the islands. Since seals are very rare and difficult to breed, there is no entrance to these caves.

In order to protect seals; in cooperation with the municipality of Foça and the Special Environmental Protection Board, it is forbidden to travel by boat, dive, catch seafood and camp on Orak Island in Siren Cliffs, where seals are observed extensively.

+ Therefore, Foça was selected as a pilot area to protect Mediterranean Monk Seals in 1991.

+ The Henry Ford European Environmental Protection Award was awarded to Foça Pilot project in 1998.

+ Approximately 100 seals live in Türkiye.

Living Areas:

Aegean Region: They live on the Gallipoli peninsula, between Foça and Datça.

Marmara Region: They live on Marmara and Mola Islands, the northern coast of the Biga Peninsula.

Mediterranean Region: They live on the beaches between Datça and Kemer, between Alanya and Taşucu and between Hatay (Samandağ) and the Syrian border.

Black Sea Region: They live between Samsun (Yakakent) and Bartın Strait.