sea the future

Due to the critical conservation state of these seals in the Mediterranean, the research needs for this species are very focused on monitoring the population health and their habitat use as this information can have a direct impact on the policies created to conserve the species. The team has regularly published the data they have collected, including projects and novel attempts to help protect the species.  Independent of the success of these projects, it is important for this information to be distributed to inform the scientific community so that efforts can be aligned with each other.

Besides being an NGO, which works primarily with the local and Turkish community, a lot of their work focuses on engaging and mediate with stakeholders of the ocean. In the case of the Monk seals, a complex issue due to economic conflict of interests, the team is trying to raise awareness, and to some degree surveil boating behaviors, of those most likely to interact with monk seals.

Through the ‘Friend of AKD’ boat program, touristic boats agree to a list of conservation-friendly actions and sustainable boating practices and are provided with a flag to show their support. The Society conducts regular patrols of the region to ensure compliance with these rules, including not entering coastal caves or feeding/interacting with the seals. They are also working with water sports operators of hotels to provide responsible water tourism briefings and project posters to display in their sales points.

The Society is committed to educating the public on the importance of monk seals and their protection. To this end, they visit local schools to do workshops with children focused on conserving monk seals and their habitat, using educational materials such as an animation video, a species card game, and providing notebooks with coloring pages and species/habitat facts. They also visit fishing cooperatives in the project areas to speak about the importance of monk seals and their protection, linking the conservation efforts to the overall health of the marine ecosystem.

Operating with national citizens, closely cooperating with the coastal community and their enforcement agents, they are in a great position to advocate for the ocean and their stakeholders in Turkey. Although turkey has established some Marine Protected Areas, the enforcement of these regulations is not in place.  The team does regular patrols of marine protected areas and reports any infractions to local enforcement agents.

The Mediterranean Monk Seal project is undertaking all scientific monitoring activities under the coordination of the Republic of Türkiye Ministry of Environment, Urbanization and Climate Change, the General Directorate for Protection of Natural Assets, the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, and the General Directorate of Nature Conservation and National Parks.

They are  coordinating activities closely with the National Parks Authority for their working region, which  is essential as it is the governmental body responsible for the national species conservation plan for the Mediterranean monk seal.

The ultimate goal of these activities is to communicate the importance of establishing core protection zones in coastal caves suitable for monk seal use and regulating human activity in these areas through enhanced enforcement by regional governance bodies.